Round one of what could be a season-long battle between a pair of Class A Softball heavyweights went to St. Marys last Monday evening. It required extra innings and another special mound effort by junior Cali Masters, but the Lady Devils pulled out a 4-2 victory over Wahama on the White Falcons home field in Mason. Wahama and St. Marys were the two best teams in class A a year ago and they are considered state title contenders again this season. The Lady Devils also won the last four match ups, including wins in the Little Kanawha Conference and Class A state champion games. Masters was her normal dominant self as the hard-throwing southpaw improved to 3-0 on the season with an impressive complete-game performance. She struck out 17 and allowed five hits. Both runs against her were unearned. Kate Reynolds’s tied the game at 2-2 in the bottom of the seventh with a clutch two-run single. St. Marys scored what proved to be the winning runs in the top of the eight innings thanks to back-to-back run-scoring singles by Layne Kincaid and Ava Giovinazzo. Masters easily protected the two-run advantage in the bottom of the eighth inning for the Lady Devils. Giovinazzo smacked three hits on the day while Kincaid and Ava Childers each has two base knocks. Autumn Mossor had St. Marys remaining hit. Giovinazzo, Kincaid, Childers and Mossor all collected one run batted in. Elissa Hoffman was the tough-luck loser for Wahama she went the distance, surrendering four runs (three earned) on eight hits while striking out two and walking one. Payton Staats had two hits for the White Falcons, who suffered their third straight loss to dip to 5-3 on the season. A sacrifice fly by Ava Childers put St. Marys on the scoreboard in the top of the first inning. Mossor singled home another run in the second frame to put the Lady Devils on top 2-0 and the lead stood up until the bottom of the seventh. St. Marys kept its perfect record intact with the win. St. Marys 110 000 02 – 4 8 1 Wahama 000 000 20 – 2 5 4 WP: Cali masters. (3-0) 8 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 0 ER, 17 SO, 1 BB, LP; Elissa Hoffman 8 IP, 8 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 2 SO, 1 BB. St. Marys hitting: Zoey Winland run, 2 stolen bases; Ava Childers 2-3. Run, RBI: Autumn Mossor 1-3, RBI;
