League title contenders lead Richland County Softball Power Poll in final week of regular season

MANSFIELD — League championship pictures are starting to come into view.

Five Richland County teams are still in the hunt and they are all ranked in the Top 5 of this week's Richland County softball power poll. Lexington sits atop the OCC while Madison is waiting for a little bit of help. Clear Fork and Shelby are tied at the top of the MOAC and Crestview is just one game back in the Firelands Conference.

See where they fall in this week's power poll.

ALMOST TOURNEY TIME: Tourney Trail: Who, when and where will Richland County softball teams play in the postseason?

9. Plymouth (2-14)

The Big Red went 1-3 since the last power poll falling to Monroeville 14-1 and St. Paul 8-3 before beating the Flyers in the second game of the series 12-10. They rounded out the week with a 16-0 loss to South Central in a busy Firelands Conference week. Jaylin Branham had a huge day in the lone win with four hits and two RBIs while Kendyll Tolbert had three hits and four RBIs and Cailynn Bailey had two hits and three RBIs. It was nice to see the offense explode a little bit before a two-game series with Crestview this week.

8. Mansfield Christian (5-7)

The Flames went 1-3, suffering a Mid-Buckeye Conference sweep against Lucas (14-4 and 12-5) before beating Harvest Prep 28-2 and losing to Buckeye Central 11-0. In the win, the Flames showed some incredible patience drawing 23 walks while Noel Cline and Sumer Schrock combined for a one-hitter with eight strikeouts in the circle. The Flames have a busy week this week with Shekinah Christian, Liberty Christian, Loudonville and Central Christian over the next six days.

7. Ontario (8-10)

The Warriors’ roller coaster ride continues as they beat Galion 11-4, lost to Marion Harding 8-7, beating Harding in Game 2 of the series 22-2 and fell to Pleasant 2-0. In the win over Harding, the Warriors got home runs from Kennedy Weiler, Morgan Pearson, Piper Studer and Trista Jewell. Jewell had four hits and three RBIs, while Studer had two hits and three RBIs and Pearson had four RBIs with her grand slam. If the Warriors can find that offensive magic, they could be a tough team to beat in the postseason. But first, they have a two-game series with Shelby and a trip to Ashland.

6. Lucas (6-5)

The Cubs swept Mansfield Christian to move up in this week’s rankings. They beat the Flames 14-4 and 12-5 as Alyssa Shay was the player of the game in the first win with two triples and four RBIs. She added two hits and two RBIs in the second win, while Mya Midkiff had two hits and three RBIs. The Cubs have a busy week with two against Central Christian, one with Crestview and one with South Central.

T4. Shelby (13-6)

The Whippets had a great week, going 3-1 with an 18-7 win over Clyde, a 9-3 loss to Clear Fork, a 3-2 win over the Colts in Game 2 of the series and a 4-3 win over state-ranked Danville. After the Whippets lost at Clear Fork, they responded with a one-run victory as Lexi Booker allowed two runs on two hits with one strikeout, needing just 78 pitches to finish off the victory. She then added a nice line against Danville. allowing three unearned runs on five hits with four strikeouts. If she can continue pitching to contact and forcing weak ground balls and popups, the Whippets should have a nice week against Ontario.

T4. Clear Fork (11-6)

The Colts went 2-2 with an 11-0 win over Northwestern and a 9-3 win over Shelby before falling to the Whippets 3-2 and Loudonville 8-1. Macy Ousley had herself a game in the win over Shelby with the first multi-homerun game of her career as she clubbed two and added four RBIs. Against Northwestern, Katrina Rogers had two hits and five RBIs. The Colts and Whippets are still tied atop the MOAC standings and Clear Fork has two games with Highland and one with River Valley this week to see if they can inch closer to clinching at least a share.

3. Crestview (12-5)

The Cougars make a nice jump up to No. 3 this week thanks to a 2-0 record. First, it was a massive 3-2 win over Mapleton that put the Cougars back in the hunt for a Firelands Conference championship. PJ Endicott had two hits, two RBIs and two doubles while Sophie Durbin had two hits. Then, it was a 15-1 win over Western Reserve as Endicott had two hits and three RBIs and Durbin had two hits, two RBIs and three steals while Chesnie Patton had two hits and three RBIs with a home run. The Cougars have two against Plymouth and one against Lucas this week in preparation for the sectional tournament next week.

2. Madison (11-5)

The Rams had a huge week, going 3-0. First, it was a 10-0 win over Columbian before a sweep of Mount Vernon, with 3-2 and 1-0 decisions giving the Rams eight wins in their last nine games. Ashley Markley did the damage offensively against Columbian with two hits and three RBIs, while Layla Azmoun tossed four innings of two-hit ball with 11 strikeouts. Markley was huge again in the first game against Mount Vernon with two hits and two RBIs, including a home run, while Kyleigh Reiter also hit a home run. Azmoun allowed two runs on four hits with five strikeouts. Then came a walk-off; Emma Stankovich drove in the winning run in the bottom of the seventh as part of a two-hit day. Azmoun allowed just three hits with five strikeouts as she continued her amazing stretch. The Rams now need to sweep Ashland and beat Wooster to give themselves a chance at a league championship. They will play Norwalk this week, too, in a fun one.

1. Lexington (19-0)

And then there is Lady Lex, as steady as they come. With five wins last week, Lex remains undefeated and has a two-game lead in the OCC over West Holmes and New Philadelphia. Lex started the week with a 5-4 win over Mount Vernon, as Kylie Thornton and Rylie McGuire had two RBIs apiece and Kylie Galownia had three hits. Makaree Chapman struck out eight in the circle. Then, it was a 2-0 win over Norwalk, a potential district tournament opponent in a couple of weeks, as Jillian Morr clubbed a home run and Chapman struck out 18. In a 14-1 win over Harding, Chapman had two hits and three RBIs, and McGuire collected three hits. In a doubleheader with Perkins, Lex outscored the Pirates 19-0. Morr had three hits and an RBI in Game 1 while Thornton had three RBIs including a homer and Chapman struck out 15 more in a two-hitter. She had three hits and four RBIs in Game 2 while Thornton had two hits and three RBIs to set the tone offensively. Lex has a big week with River Valley before taking on New Philly twice and Mount Vernon once. With three wins, they can clinch at least a share of the OCC title before their series with West Holmes next week.

Last Week’s Rankings

9. Plymouth

8. Ontario

7. Lucas

6. Mansfield Christian

5. Crestview

4. Shelby

3. Clear Fork

2. Madison

1. Lexington

This article originally appeared on Mansfield News Journal: Richland County softball power poll for April 29: Lexington still perfect