S. Schlemmer goes 3 for 3, Milam adds 2 RBIs as Lady Cavs hang on vs. NM

Hampton goes 4 for 4, C. Sparks hits 2-run HR for Lady Warriors in loss

BY VAL TSOUTSOURIS

Sports Editor, RTC

Savannah Schlemmer Gracie Milam Chloe Sparks

CULVER — Culver coach J.B. Overmyer said he considers himself a defensive coach, but his players might be changing his reputation.

They might be becoming an offensive juggernaut.

Savannah Schlemmer went 3 for 3, including the go-ahead two-run single as part of a five-run fifth, and Gracie Milam had a pair of RBI singles as the Lady Cavaliers beat North Miami 8-7 in a Hoosier North home game Wednesday.

Culver came in with a .530 team batting average, and they mashed out 12 more hits against North Miami.

Brianna Schlemmer and Hayden Lute each added two hits and an RBI, and Alexis Gasanovas drove in two runs with a bizarre two-put, two-run infield single in the fifth that put Culver on top 8-4.

Abigayle Zehner and Brooke Davis added one hit each.

“It’s all those girls in that dugout right there,” Overmyer said of his players’ determination and success offensively. “Like I was saying earlier, I’m a defensive coach. So the batting is on them. We work on it in practice, but I’m more defense. I want to be able to throw and catch the ball and make plays and try to shut people out. But these girls can just hit.”

North Miami cracked 14 hits themselves – including at least one in every inning – against Culver’s Aiden Molebash, but they left eight on base.

Chloe Sparks cranked a two-run homer to left-center with one out in the seventh to cut the deficit to 8-7, but Molebash got Porscha Pickett to ground to Lute at second base. Lindsey Pugh singled, but Aeva Myers popped to Davis at short to end it.

Layla Hampton headlined the North Miami offense, going 4 for 4 with two RBIs. Sparks went 3 for 4, and Delilah Weaver and Freedom McHenry each went 2 for 4 in the top two spots in the order. Pugh had a hit and an RBI, and Zoey Sparks and Pickett had one hit each. Khloe Hovermale had an RBI.

Culver is 4-0 overall and 2-0 in the Hoosier North. North Miami fell to 2-5, 0-2.

This marked just the second time that North Miami has held their opponent to single digits. Their team ERA is 9.45.

Hampton’s two-out, two-run single in the fifth scored McHenry and Zoey Sparks and gave North Miami a 4-3 lead.

With the top of the order coming up, Overmyer told his players when they came back onto the dugout that they better give him three runs. They gave him that plus two runs that it turned out they did not have to spare.

Zehner led off with a single and advanced to second on a fly to left field and to third on a wild pitch. Molebash walked.

Milam singled down the third baseline to score Zehner and tie the game.

Molebash and Milam pulled off a double steal, and Savannah Schlemmer slammed a single to right-center to score Molebash and Milam and put Culver up 6-4.

North Miami first-year coach Amanda Walters replaced Zoey Sparks with Pickett.

Brianna Schlemmer’s single moved Savannah Schlemmer to second. Maddie Kitts grounded to second, moving runners to second and third.

Gasanovas then hit a sinking pop fly that dropped over Pickett’s head and right in front of shortstop McHenry and second baseman Hovermale. McHenry and Hovermale nearly collided going for the ball, and the ball squirted behind them far enough for Savannah Schlemmer and Brianna Schlemmer to both score and make it 8-4.

Hovermale left the game with an apparent injury. Walters said Hovermale had been dealing with an ankle injury prior to the game and hurt it again.

Weaver’s RBI bloop single in the sixth made it 8-5, but Milam behind the plate jumped out of her crouch and threw out Myers trying to go from first to third on the play.

“It was a big out,” Walters said. “And those are the kinds of things we can learn from, and moving forward, we can keep that in our back pocket.”

Said Overmyer of Milam: “She’s one of the smartest girls on the team and one that I’ve ever coached. Whether it’s behind the plate catching, baserunning or playing third base, she’s a very highly intelligent player and makes those kinds of plays all the time.”

Molebash walked only one and fanned nine. However, North Miami had success against her in ways that other opponents had not. She had allowed only four hits in 11 innings all season prior to Wednesday.

“I feel like we could have definitely,” Walters said when asked if they could have scored more runs. “Today wasn’t a matter of how good we can hit. We know we can hit well.”

Culver 8, North Miami 7

North Miami 100 121 2 – 7 14 0

Culver 210 050 X – 8 12 2

WP – Aiden Molebash (7 IP, 14 H, 7 R, 7 ER, 1 BB, 9 K)

LP – Zoey Sparks (4 ⅓ IP, 8 H, 7 R, 7 ER, 3 BB, 0 K)

2B – Zoey Sparks (NM), Delilah Weaver (NM), Layla Hampton 2 (NM), Freedom McHenry (NM), Hayden Lute (CUL)

3B – Freedom McHenry (NM)

HR – Chloe Sparks (NM)