Derrick Webb, Managing Editor
Southern Ohio Sports Authority is presented by OhioHealth.
CHILLICOTHE — Monday’s most impactful moment belonged to junior Mackenzie Eisel.
In a game where Unioto and Miami Trace each threw their fair share of punches, Eisel delivered the knockout blow in the bottom of the seventh inning.
With two outs, two on and the score tied at 4-4, the Shermans’ second baseman jumped on the first pitch she saw and muscled a base hit into shallow right field, allowing teammate Kendal Walker — who was pinch running for Maycie Cox — to score the game-winning run.
CREDIT: Derrick Webb/SOSA
It also gave the Shermans their sixth win in the last seven tries, keeping their season alive by a 5-4 final in a Division III District First Round contest.
“It’s well-deserved. She’s a junior and she’s worked hard for three years. It’s nice to have her in that spot where she has a clutch hit like that,” Unioto coach Spenser Smith said of Eisel. “I have all the confidence in the world in her. It was big for her. She’s a great kid from a great family. It’s just well-deserved.”
Eisel’s single will steal Monday’s headlines. But it came after Miami Trace threw everything it had at Unioto, and then some.
Nearly a month earlier, on April 17, the two teams met in the regular season. Unioto won that meeting by a 13-3 final. But the Panthers weren’t going to be having deja vu. In fact, they put pressure on Unioto’s defense in nearly every frame.
“Our girls, pretty much all year, have been ready to play,” Smith said. “They’re prepared for every team, no matter what. We talked about Miami Trace before tonight’s game and said that this wasn’t the same team we’d played [on April 17]. So we knew it was going to be a tough game. They have good players. But our girls never break stride, even when things don’t go our way. There have been many things that didn’t go our way this year. But we keep competing.”
The Shermans (14-9) took a 1-0 lead with an RBI single from Peytan Robinson in the bottom of the second inning. That advantage swelled to 3-0 when Mackenzie Welch singled into center field, scoring both Robinson and McKenna Williams.
In the third, they played add-on with an RBI single from Mackenzie Paugh, scoring Maddie Tuttle and making it 4-0.
PHOTOS: Images from Unioto’s district tournament win over Miami Trace
But just when it looked like Unioto was poised to run away with a win, Miami Trace (9-11) decided to rise off the mat and fight back.
MT’s Dylaney Templin started the top of the fourth by reaching first base on error. A second error in the inning, this one with two outs, put runners on first and second. Ellie Hoppes then took advantage of the opportunity, lacing a two-run double into right field to cut the deficit in half.
In the fifth, more of the same took place.
Zoey Grooms singled to begin the frame before Hunter Johnson reached on an error. A one-out walk to Mya Babibneau then loaded the bases, forcing Unioto to call upon Paugh to enter the circle.
Paugh eventually limited the damage, but it didn’t happen before Templin forced a 4-4 tie with a scorching two-run single into center field.
That was, however, the final notable burst of offense that the Panthers would muster. Paugh slammed the door shut in both the sixth and seventh innings, stranding two runners in the process.
“She’s a tough kid,” Smith said. “I’ve known her for three years now. She’s used to pitching every single day but her job now is to play first base and to come in to relieve. She’s always ready to go at any time. She pitched against Miami Trace last time and did really well. We just felt that if we brought her in tonight, she could shut them down. She did that.”
Paugh’s steadiness in the circle set the stage for Eisel’s heroics in the bottom half of the seventh.
Tuttle began the inning with a single before Paugh reached on error with one out. A groundout moved both runners into scoring position, and Eisel did the rest, sending the Shermans home happy.
Statistically, Welch led the Shermans’ offense with a 2-for-4 effort alongside a double and two RBIs. Tuttle ended the night 2-for-3 with a run, and Robinson was 1-for-3 with a run and an RBI.
Paugh also chipped in at the dish, going 2-for-3 with a run and an RBI. She picked up the win in the circle in 2 ⅔ innings of work, allowing just three hits and striking out one hitter.
For the Panthers, Templin led the way, going 2-for-4 with two RBIs. Hoppes finished 1-for-3 with a double and two RBIs, and Babineau was 1-for-3 with a walk and a double.
While Miami Trace’s season comes to a close, the Shermans have a meeting with Zane Trace on Wednesday to complete their regular season slate. Then, they’ll travel to Chillicothe on Thursday for a Division III District Quarterfinal.
Unioto beat the Cavaliers by a 1-0 final on April 10. But that, at this point in the season, means absolutely nothing.
“We have to have the mindset that we can actually win,” Smith said. “It’s hard to beat a team like that with a pitcher like that twice. But the way we’re playing, if we play like we know how, we always have a chance. Chillicothe is really good and they’ll be ready for us. But we’ll show up, try to put the bat on the ball and go from there.”
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