WHITEWATER — Jefferson’s softball team swept Whitewater by scores of 3-1 and 12-4 to clinch the Rock Valley Conference’s Valley Division championship outright on Thursday at WHS.
The Eagles (16-5, 11-2 in conference) were tested by the Whippets (8-8, 7-6) in both games.
In the opener, Jefferson starter Ashlyn Enke pitched a two-hitter with 11 strikeouts, no walks to earn the decision.
The Eagles’ top three hitters in the order powered the offense as Hildie Dempsey went 2-for-4 and scored twice out of the leadoff spot while No. 2 hitter Lily Fairfield finished 3-for-4 and Bre Mengel added two hits and drove in a pair.
Dempsey opened the game with a single and scored on a Mengel base knock up the middle. Dempsey tripled on a ground ball to right field in the second with two outs and scored on an RBI single up the gut from Fairfield.
Paige Kollwelter’s two-out single plated Falyn Krahn and got the Whippets within 2-1 in the third.
Jefferson, which also won league titles in 2019, 2021 and 2022, padded its lead in the fourth on a run-scoring single off the bat of Mengel.
Enke worked 1-2-3 innings five times and limited baserunners effectively, navigating around a one-out double by Kollwelter in the sixth.
Dempsey (2-for-4 with three runs), Mengel (3-for-4 with two runs) and winning pitcher Aeryn Messmann (2-for-4 with three runs) ignited Jefferson’s offense in game two.
Jefferson had runners on second and third with two outs in the third when Messmann hit a shallow fly ball to right field, where the outfielder and second baseman collided trying to make the grab. Three runs scored as the ball fell to turf to give the Eagles the lead for good, 4-2.
Chloe Smith singled home a run in Jefferson’s fourth and scored on an error to make it 6-3 before Dempsey crossed home on a wild pitch.
In the sixth, Mengel and Allie Hesse (with doubles) and Messmann (on a single) drove home runs to widen the margin.
Messmann pitched the first four innings, allowing two earned on four hits with three strikeouts. Dempsey allowed a run on three hits in the final three frames.
Jefferson caps conference play at Turner on Friday while Whitewater hosts Palmyra-Eagle on Monday.
First game
JEFFERSON 3, WHITEWATER 1
Jefferson 110 100 0 — 3 11 1
Whitewater 001 000 0 — 1 2 1
Leading hitters — J: Dempsey 2x4 (3B), Fairfield 3x4, Mengel 2x4; WW: Kollwelter 2x3 (2B).
Pitching (ip-h-r-er-bb-so) — J: Enke W; 7-2-1-0-0-11; WW: O’Neal L; 7-11-3-3-1-4.
Second game
JEFFERSON 12, WHITEWATER 4
Whitewater 002 101 0 — 4 5 5
Jefferson 103 314 x — 12 11 2
Leading hitters — WW: G. Kubicz 2x2, O’Neal (2B); J: Dempsey 2x4, Mengel 3x4 (2B), Messmann 2x4, Hesse (2B)
Pitching (ip-h-r-er-bb-so) — WW: Schilt 3.1-6-7-3-3-1, O’Neal L; 2.2-5-5-2-1-2; J: Messmann W; 4-4-3-2-0-3, Dempsey 3-1-1-1-3-2.
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