(Gabby Zuniga hits a line drive that is caught at first base in Ross’ sectional loss at Whitmer)
TOLEDO – The Fremont Ross softball team knew defeating Whitmer in the sectional tournament would be a tall climb. Not only had the Lady Giants’ senior class never defeated the Panthers, they’d never played a full seven-inning game.
One of those streaks came to an end Wednesday afternoon. While Ross’ sectional tournament run ended in a 7-0 defeat, coach Tony Hill sees the strides the program had made.
“Our seniors have gotten run-ruled by Whitmer every time they’ve played them except for now,” Hill said. “It’s a message to them that the program is in the right direction.”
In its previous two games against Whitmer this season, Ross lost by a combined score of 31-2.
“Our kids battled through it, I’m glad we didn’t shut down,” Hill said. “We showed a lot of improvement there. I thought we fought all the way through. I told the kids it’s a disappointing result, but I’m still proud of them.
“We played well but not well enough.”
Whitmer came out swinging early, leading off the game with a double which, soon thereafter, was driven home with an RBI single to begin a three-run first inning.
While the Panthers’ offense was strong from the start, the Lady Giants were slow to keep up with Whitmer pitcher Amanda Combs, who retired Ross’ first eight batters in order until Malayah Horn singled in the bottom of the third. Though Ross began to get better swings on the ball – most notably from Gabby Zuniga and Paige Risch who each had line drive singles taken away by terrific plays – Horn’s hit was Ross’ only hit of the day, as Hailey Taylor – Ross’ only other base-runner – reached base on an error in the fifth.
“Whitmer doesn’t have a weakness. If there is, nobody’s found it yet,” Hill said. “They hit well, they field well, Combs is an absolute monster to deal with. It’s one of those things if you’re going to beat them, you have to sneak some of those balls by them.
“It’s real tough to beat Whitmer if you don’t get any breaks and our kids didn’t catch any today.”
The Lady Giants fall to 7-16 overall and have four more games remaining on their schedule. Ross travels to Findlay Friday before hosting a doubleheader against Sandusky Perkins on Saturday. They close out the season Tuesday at St. Joseph Central Catholic.
“We will know exactly when our last game is, it won’t surprise us,” Hill said. “We have four very important games left. Those are four winnable games. Findlay is another one we’ve been trying to get after and our seniors have one last crack against them.”
2024-25 Bowling: Girls Team
| Name | Grade |
|---|---|
| Nalani Dumas | 12 |
| Samara Dumas | 11 |
| Cali Eversole | 09 |
| Nevaeh Fetterman-Frederick | 10 |
| Makaela Finley | 12 |
| Makaiya Finley | 11 |
| Lauren Gazdecki | 10 |
| Samara Hernandez | 10 |
| Brenna Rhea | 10 |
| Victoria Rhea | 09 |
| Autumn Sanchez | 10 |
| Kenzie Schwochow | 10 |
| Abigail Stachowiak | 11 |
| Jessica Thompson | 12 |