Richland County Softball Power Poll sees new No. 1 team for third straight week

MANSFIELD — It is just the third week of the Richland County Softball Power Poll and already we have our third No. 1 team.

Let’s find out who it is and why it is in the top spot with this week’s power poll.

SCORES AND MORE: Richland County Softball Scoreboard: Lexington sweeps Crestview, MC's Cline hits two grand slams

9. Lucas (0-2)

The Cubs have fallen victim to Mother Nature and have only played two games this season. Their only one since the last power poll was a 12-0 loss to Loudonville when they had just one hit. It has to be tough to get anything going without having any real game experience. They should get some this week with two games against Crestline and games with Colonel Crawford and Buckeye Central rounding out the week.

8. Plymouth (1-4)

The Big Red have hit a bit of a tough stretch of late with three losses since the last power poll. First, it was a 5-2 loss to South Central then an 11-1 loss to Wynford and an 18-5 loss to Black River. And things don’t exactly slow down this week with a two-game series with Firelands Conference favorite Monroeville looming as well as a couple of tough games at the MVD Tournament in Ontario this weekend.

7. Ontario (2-5)

The Warriors spent a nice weekend in West Virginia playing against some very tough competition. They finished 1-3 for the week, including 1-2 in West Virginia with their two losses coming against a St. Marys team that is state-ranked. They did earn a 10-0 win over Williamstown while they were down there as Eden Howard had three hits and Autumn Taylor got the bat going with two hits and three RBIs, including a home run. Howard earned the win in the circle with a three-hit gem with six strikeouts. The Warriors have two big ones against Galion this week before taking on Hillsdale, Norwalk and Perkins to round out the week.

6. Mansfield Christian (2-2)

The Flames make a nice jump to No. 6 this week after going 2-1 since the last power poll. They started things off with an 18-0 win over Central Christian before falling 16-6 to Tree of Life and then rebounding with a 17-5 win over Wellington. Noel Cline is a superstar. She had four hits with a triple and six RBIs while also earning the win in the circle with five strikeouts in the victory over Central Christian. She then slugged two grand slams, piled up eight RBIs and earned the win in the circle with six strikeouts against Wellington. She is just the 16th player in Ohio high school softball history to hit two grand slams in the same game. If she can continue playing like that, the Flames could be a force come tournament time.

5. Clear Fork (3-2)

The Colts had just one game since the last power poll, but it was a big one with a 9-7 victory over Ontario. Mal Blubaugh had two hits and two RBIs, including a huge home run that landed in the outfield on the baseball diamond. Katrina Rogers also had a big home run to go with her three RBIs, and Macy Ousley also had a three-RBI day. The Colts have a big week ahead with a two-game series with Pleasant before taking on Northwestern, Lexington and Lucas at the MVD Tournament in Ontario.

4. Madison (3-3)

The Rams drop back to No. 4 this week after suffering a 5-3 loss to Lexington in their only game since the last power poll. Kyleigh Reiter is swinging a hot bat as she piled up two more hits, and Campbell Kiser is working her way back into true form after a knee injury cut her season short last year. The Rams have West Holmes twice as well as Dover, Clyde and Eastwood once in what could be a big week to turn things around.

3. Crestview (5-2)

The Cougars drop from the top spot this week to No. 3 after going 2-2 since the last power poll. It started out with a 24-0 win over Western Reserve and an absolutely huge 3-1 win over Margaretta in what could be a district tournament matchup. Then, Crestview fell to Lexington twice 14-0 and 11-5 as part of a triple-header on Saturday. The offense was sensational against WR. Chesnie Patton, PJ Endicott and Kalee Hamman all had four hits apiece while five others had two or more hits for the day. Endicott and Makenna Tacket each had a home run and Jillian Weaver had five RBIs. If the Cougars can swing it like that, they are going to be tough to beat. They have a big week ahead with two games against South Central, a series finale with Western, a road game at Wynford and a double-header with Willard on Saturday.

2. Shelby (6-1)

The Whippets just keep on winning. Last week, they beat Galion 16-3 and 13-8 and then knocked off Tiffin Columbian 13-3. In six games, the Whippets have scored 90 runs already and they are hitting an insane .418 as a team. And it seems to be a different player having a huge night at the dish every single game. Against TC, it was Natalie Kennard who had two hits and six RBIs with a home run. Mallary Gundrum also slugged a homer as part of a 3-RBI day. In the second game against Galion, Lexi Booker had three hits and three RBIs with a home run as two others, Maggie Bogner and Gundrum, had 3-RBI games. In the first win over Galion, four players had two RBIs apiece. That offense is something else, and it will have to keep producing with a two-game series against Highland coming up this week before the big showdown with Lexington on April 15.

1. Lexington (6-0)

Speaking of Lexington, this week’s No. 1 team is off to a hot start as the only remaining undefeated team left in Richland County. The week started with a 7-3 win over Clyde before the big 5-3 OCC win over rival Madison. Then, it was complete dominance with a 17-0 win over Vermilion and two victories over Crestview, 14-0 and 11-5. Makaree Chapman has been something else for Lady Lex. She is hitting .667 with 14 hits including seven doubles with 10 RBIs and nine runs scored. In the circle, she is 3-0 with a save and a 2.24 earned run average with 39 strikeouts. But it was Kaylie Eichorn who stole the show on Saturday with four hits and four RBIs in the first win over Crestview and two hits and three more RBIs in the second game. Lex is grooving at the right time and has a two-game series with Wooster this week. That April 15 game against Shelby is going to be fun.

Last week’s rankings

9. Mansfield Christian

8. Lucas

7. Plymouth

6. Ontario

5. Clear Fork

4. Lexington

3. Shelby

2. Madison

1. Crestview

This article originally appeared on Mansfield News Journal: Richland County Softball Power Poll searching for stability, Lex takes top spot