Carson Francis, Staff Writer
Southern Ohio Sports Authority is presented by OhioHealth.
ATHENS — Valley hadn’t forgotten about June 4, 2025.
That day, the Indians watched as Lynchburg-Clay celebrated a 4-3 victory in a Division V regional semifinal — a win the Mustangs picked up on their way to the Final 4.
So when the two schools met again in a Division V district final on Friday afternoon, Valley made sure history would not repeat itself.
The Indians left it all on the field at Ohio University, rounding off nine straight runs to start the contest en route to a 9-3 victory — claiming the program’s sixth district crown in eight years.
CREDIT: Raymond Gleadle/SOSA
“Before the game, everyone was amped. We knew we had to get this one really bad because they beat us last year,” Valley’s Gabe McNeil said. “When we started off, things were a little slow. We were scratching some across, but whenever we broke it open, things were great. We were all in great moods and started playing really good.”
Almost right away, things clicked offensively for Valley (20-7) in the bottom of the first.
With Nick Queen standing on first, Nolan Barnett singled to advance him to third, where Queen would then take off for home and score on a throwing error. Then, McNeill dropped a blooper into the right-center field gap that allowed Barnett to score, putting Valley ahead 2-0 early on.
“[Barnett] gives us a great chance to win all the time. He is a bulldog,” Valley head coach Nolan Crabtree said. “What he did today was great. He got us started in the first inning with him putting the ball in play.”
Barnett’s work was far from done, though.
After shutting down the Mustangs (21-7) in the second and third innings, the senior delivered with his bat in the bottom of the third. With one out, Barnett skied one high into right before the ball dropped at the warning track, allowing Queen to score from first on an RBI triple.
“That triple that I hit, I wasn’t looking at the fastball. I was looking off-speed,” Barnett said. “I saw it out over the plate and I just took it that way.”
Collin Greene would then drive home courtesy runner Braxten Conaway, extending the Indians’ lead to a comfortable 4-0 advantage.
Lynchburg-Clay tried to answer when Trevor Niehaus singled with nobody out before he stole second and third base.
This did nothing to throw Barnett off of his rhythm, though. He proceeded to strike out the next three batters to retire the side and leave the goose egg standing on LC’s side of the scoreboard.
That sucked out any life Lynchburg-Clay had at that moment, and the Indians took advantage.
With two runners on and one out, Gavin Hannah ripped a two-run triple into right field to extend the lead to 6-0. Carson Powell then brought him in to score with a single before a throwing error plated another pair of runs, giving the Indians a 9-0 lead heading into the fifth.
“That five-run inning was amazing, to say the least. It gave us a great cushion,” McNeil said. “After you get that much of a lead, especially that late, you just play for outs. You don’t really have to worry about too much, as long as you get an out at a time.”
Still, Lynchburg-Clay had a little bit of fight left.
Harley Lewis singled to drive in Max Baker, putting the Mustangs on the board. Then, Elam Faust and Quin Wells both singled in back-to-back at-bats, cutting the deficit to 9-3.
But, needless to say, that wouldn’t be nearly enough.
Barnett went right back to work in the sixth, sitting the Mustangs down in order. Then, after giving up a one-out double, the Indians would turn two after Hunter Cunningham caught a line drive and flipped to second to complete the double play, sealing a district title.
“Once our confidence was up, it stayed there. For the last week or two, we hadn’t been playing great ball,” Crabtree said. “We had some injuries we were fighting through. We got Gabe McNeil back the other night, and us being healthy meant the world, because our confidence was there and it helped us play good ball today.”
Queen was perfect at the plate, leading Valley with a 3-for-3 campaign while coming around to score three times. Barnett finished 2-for-3 with a triple and an RBI, Powell went 2-for-4 with an RBI, and Hannah and McNeil each went 1-for-3 with Hannah driving in two runs.
For the Mustangs, Faust finished 2-for-4 with two doubles and a run driven in. Wells was 1-for-2 with an RBI, and Lewis went 1-for-4 and drove in a run.
Valley will advance to Tuesday’s Division V regional semifinal, where Minford awaits. The Falcons topped Ironton by a 9-2 final to advance.
That matchup is slated for a 6 p.m. first pitch, back at Ohio University’s Bob Wren Stadium.
While Valley beat Minford in both regular season meetings, the Falcons did take the SOC III title outright while Valley finished second.
“The reason we beat Minford both times was because Nolan Barnett and our defense were on point,” Crabtree said. “We drove in runs when we had the chance in those games, and that’s just what it’s going to take. We’ve got to play flawless defense, have some timely hitting. We’ve done that recently and I’m proud of our kids.”
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