Rockets lineup rarely goes hungry as softball moves to state tourney
FINDLAY — The batters at the bottom of Oak Harbor's lineup want to eat just as much as those at the top.
No worries. Everybody most often feasts for the Rockets.
Myley Sandwisch has two postseason home runs as Oak Harbor advanced to a state final against Baltimore Liberty Union at 3 p.m. Thursday at Akron Firestone Stadium. She bats ninth in the order.
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The Rockets take pressure off one another to produce, but nobody wants to be left out.
"There's always pressure, we all want to hit," she said. "I'm just as greedy as they are (at the top of the lineup)."
Sandwisch doubled and scored on a birthday home run for Reese Adkins in a 12-2 victory over West Jefferson in five innings in a regional final.
"See the ball, hit the ball," she said. "Swing at first pitch strikes."
Sandwisch belted a home run in Oak Harbor's 4-0 shutout of Margaretta in a regional semifinal.
"You look at her, you don't expect her to be Myley," Rockets senior Porter Gregory said. "She's little; she goes yard. She does her thing. She's awesome. She bats eight or nine. In the Oak Harbor lineup, we're all good hitters."
Sandwisch classmate Morgan LaLonde is already among the best. She bats eighth for now, right in front of Sandwisch.
"Morgan has been a great producer," Sandwisch said.
Sandwisch hit a grand slam in a 10-5 victory over Metamora Evergreen for a sectional crown.
"When you least expect it," Gregory said. "When she needs to show up, she shows up."
Sandwisch read the play and dove home to touch the plate with her hand ahead of a throw after a ground ball to third base for the go-ahead run in the second inning against West Jefferson.
She's starting to feel like she belongs.
"My first home run (against Rossford in the regular season), I shocked myself," she said. "I'd been striking out and grounding out. Something happened."
Sandwisch began the year at second base and was inserted as a starter at third base early in the season.
"I kept working hard and things fell into place," she said. "Just hard work."
Older sister Kaytlynn Sandwisch, who graduated in 2019, was all-state at shortstop for Oak Harbor.
"I've always looked up to her," Sandwisch said. "She motivates me. Always with a smile on her face."
Sandwisch didn't expect to have the impact she's had as a freshman, but she thinks she knows why she was able.
"Not getting comfortable," she said. "Always trying to play to your potential. We try our best no matter what. We hit every day."
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This article originally appeared on Fremont News-Messenger: Oak Harbor Rockets OHSAA softball Myley Sandwisch
