What a week for Titusville Little League softball all-stars. 

​The 9-10 year-old softball team is heading into the District 1
​championship game on Monday against Mid-East, who they defeated in a barn burner extra inning game Thursday night  5-3.

A sweet three-peat is in the books for the Titusville 11-12 year-old softball all-stars after Monday’s 7-2 victory over Cochranton/Lakeview in the District 1 championship game.
It was their second win over CL this week and third win in a row.

CL barely hit a ball out of the infield against Titusville pitcher Harper Wolfkiel who pitched a solid game.

​"Harper did a great job," head coach Abby Popescu said after the game. "She just held her own out there and did not waver despite the difficult conditions with the humidity and heat. She was a steady hand."
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Titusville jumped right on CL pitcher Alara Knox when leadoff batter Mary Lesko singled with a little bloop just over the third baseman’s head.

Wolfkiel then almost took Knox’s head off with a hard liner right up the middle that scored Lesko who had advanced to second on a ground out by Giselle Gibbons.

​Wolfkiel eventually scored on a passed ball. Hanna Ringer also scored on a passed ball after reaching on a walk and advancing to third on a pair of steals.
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It looked as though CL would answer in the bottom of the first with a lead off walk by Ella Pittner followed by a base hit by Madisyn Dillaman to put runners on the corners.

Then Knox put a solid bat into the ball driving it hard to right field that virtually everybody in the park thought was going to drop.

​Everyone except speedy right fielder Kylie Yochum who snagged the ball in her outstretched glove and alertly threw to first catching Dillaman for the double play. Pittner was also nearly home and had to hightail it back to third. After a strikeout ended the inning CL was left scoreless.

Titusville had a big opportunity in the second, but left the bases loaded, scoring none.
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CL got an infield hit by Audrey Lewis to lead off the second inning. She ended up on third two sacrifice bunts later.

She was driven in when Amelia Drumm beat out an infield squib.
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In the top of the third Lesko again reached on a bunt and stole another base before scoring on yet another wild pitch.

​Gibbons, who walked, stole her way to third and then scored when Wolfkiel struck out, but alertly broke for first after the catcher bobbled the ball. On the throw to first Gibbons sailed across home plate.
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In the bottom of the third Yochum again came up huge with a good catch that prevented another run.
Titusville added a run in the fourth when Capri Warner had a solid at bat drawing walk after being down 0-2 in the count.  

​She stole a base and advanced on a fielder’s choice before scoring on another fielder’s choice.

In the bottom of the fifth Yochum once again came up huge with a diving catch in shallow right just inside the line with a runner on second.

Even though the runner advanced to third it killed any momentum and secured the second out. Wolfkiel  then struck out the final batter.
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"Kylie (Yochum) just had the game of her career so far," coach Popescu said. "Just really outstanding. She was just all over the place, she is really smart out there."

Amelia Kline reached on an error in the top of the sixth, ending up on third after a Lesko hit.

Gibbons beat out an infield hit, scoring Titusville's final run.

For the second night in a row, the homestanding Titusville 11-12 all-stars took advantage of very sloppy third innings by their opponents to rack up some serious points. 
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Monday against Cochranton/Lakeview they totaled eight runs in the frame on only two hits en route to a 11-3 win.

​Tuesday against Conneaut/Mid-East, Titusville scored 10 runs on four hits and nine errors in the third. This onslaught included a dropped called third strike that scored a run after the batter, Gina Beers, beat the throw to first and Beatrice Popescu forced an errant throw to third that she then alertly scored on after the ball got away. 
They won this game 15-2 in four innings.

“These girls are smart base runners and they are taking advantage,” said Titusville head coach Abby Popescu. “I’m really proud of how they are coming along.

​Everybody is really aggressive in this tournament so far. We’re really pleased with that.”

They are hitting the ball hard which forces some of these errors while others find gaps.
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In the first inning Harper Wolfkiel took a two out pitch driving it to the outfield. She aggressively turned it into a triple when it skipped away from the fielder. Layla Greathouse brought her home with a single.
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C/ME came right back after Lucy Moore drew a lead-off walk against starting pitcher Hanna Ringer. Moore made it to second on a fielder’s choice. Lucy Kohler forced a double error on an infield hit that scored Moore to tie the game.

C/ME didn’t score again until the bottom of the fourth when Brinley Ritchey drove one just about an inch over the glove of center fielder Amelia Kline for a triple. She scored on a fielder’s choice a couple batters later. But that is all they could muster. 

In the top of the fourth Titusville put a nail in the coffin by adding four more insurance runs on a two-out rally.  Mary Lesko beat out an infield hit. Giselle Gibbons then blasted a triple over the centerfielder's head. Wolfkiel drove Gibbons home on a single that was bobbled allowing her to end up on third.

​Layla Greathouse drove in Wolfkiel on a shot to right and then the starting pitcher Ringer helped out her own cause with a bloop just fair in right field that drove in the final run for Titusville.