Off and running: Lexington uses speed to run past Ontario into district championship game

WILLARD — It doesn't matter where the ball is hit, Jillian Morr is sprinting out of the box.

On Tuesday afternoon in a 7-1 Division II district semifinal win over rival Ontario, the Lexington senior was off and running, collecting four hits and scoring four runs to punch Lady Lex's ticket to Thursday's district championship game for the second time in three years.

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"All I was thinking was getting extra bases because that is how you score," Morr said. "Whenever I can make hustle plays, it pumps everyone else up and shows the rest of my teammates that we can go out and do this."

Morr set the tone early when she started the home half of the first inning off with a single before moving over on a sacrifice bunt by Quinn Patrick. Morr then sprinted home on a single to center by Kylie Galownia, beating the throw to the plate easily to get Lady Lex on the board first.

They never looked back.

Galownia had two hits and three RBIs while Patrick added three hits and an RBI, Kaylie Eichorn had three hits and two RBIs and Madyson Taylor rounded out the offense with a hit and an RBI for a well-balanced day at the dish for Lex.

"We knew coming in that they were going to hit the ball well, pitch well and run the bases aggressively," Ontario coach Jamee Burke said. "And that trifecta is tough. They are so solid on defense and we knew we were going to have to play our best game of the year if we wanted to win. We got out-hit and Makaree pitched fantastic so hats off to them."

Junior pitcher Makaree Chapman threw seven strong innings, allowing one run on four hits with seven strikeouts to earn the victory in the circle.

Morr and Galownia had two doubles apiece. Morr's were actually singles she turned into doubles with her all-out hustle. Lady Lex also stole six bases and took extra bases on throws in seemingly every inning.

"Playing fast and making the other team make mistakes is always our emphasis going into every game," Lexington coach Todd Galownia said. "Jillian is a phenomenal baserunner and I think this entire team runs the bases very well, and we just had to show it."

Morr showed it in the second inning after she ripped a two-out single before stealing second base. On a ground ball to second base, Morr sprinted around taking two bases on a ball that never left the infield sliding head first into home on a play that ignited the Lady Lex.

"I have seen it a lot in travel ball, but it isn't something you see a lot at the high school level," Todd Galownia said. "I always tell our players that when they are on second, they should always be thinking about taking two bases on anything hit. If we are running full speed, we can score on any pause or hesitation and that is what Jillian did."

Morr then turned in her two doubles in her next two at-bats on balls that were fielded in front of the outfielders.

"She has the mindset of getting a double out of the box," Todd Galownia said. "We knew the grass was high in the outfield and they were playing kind of deep, so as soon as it got through the infield she was thinking two all the way. It would take a great throw to get her because she is so fast. If they would have thrown her out, I would have been just as happy because it means they are being aggressive."

Ontario got two hits from Trista Jewell and one apiece from Morgan Pearson and Autumn Taylor. Kennedy Weiler had the lone RBI in the top of the second inning after Ontario allowed two runs before cutting the lead in half in a nice response.

"We talk about momentum shifts and not giving up crooked numbers," Burke said. "If we give up one, with the way we swung the bat this year, we feel confident to get that back. Today, we had it in the second but looking strikeouts got a little contagious."

The Warriors finish the year 12-13 and say goodbye to seniors Jewell, Taylor, Olivia Kreger and Gracie Thurber.

"Having had 10 years at Wynford and then coming to Ontario, it is totally different softball," Burke said. "I am looking forward to building off of what we did this year. I had a phenomenal group of seniors who made my job easy. I ask a lot of my seniors and they did everything I needed them to do, which is rare with a first-year coach. They accepted change. I look forward to next year."

Lexington (25-2) started May with a two-game losing streak but has now turned in four straight wins. It lost Ohio Cardinal Conference games on a Wednesday and Friday but used a fun Saturday night to regroup.

"We had prom that weekend so it was nice to have that little mental reset after losing those two games," Morr said. "After that, we decided that we had our fun and it was time to get our heads back in the game and do what we set out to do."

And they did, clinching at least a share of the Ohio Cardinal Conference championship on Saturday with a 6-4 win over West Holmes before beating Ontario on Tuesday to advance to the district championship game against Clear Fork — 2-1 winners over Norwalk in the second semifinal game of the evening.

"It is nice to be back after missing it last year," Todd Galownia said. "With that comes pressure. There are only four of them who were on that team that won it two years ago so we will lean on them. I am excited because they played like veterans today and hopefully that carries over to Thursday."

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This article originally appeared on Mansfield News Journal: Off and running: Lexington uses speed to run past Ontario into district championship game