Collision Course Lebanon vs. Colerain
Warriors must go through Cardinals
Southwest Ohio's top two teams meet Saturday, with a trip to the regional tournament up for grabs.
Thursday, May 22, 2008
The top two seeds in southwest Ohio — Lebanon and Colerain — square off Saturday morning at Lakota East High School in a Division I district softball final, with the winner advancing to the Columbus regional. Game time is 11 a.m.
For the Lebanon Warriors, the No. 1 seed in the Dayton sectional, another Greater Miami Conference team stands between them and an elusive district championship. Colerain (18-4), the No. 1 seed in the Cincinnati sectional, seeks to follow Fairfield and Hamilton by eliminating Lebanon (27-2) in the district final.
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The Warriors have failed to advance past this game in each of the past three seasons.
"The district game is a game that we've lost the last three years, but I don't know if I'd say it's a hurdle we need to overcome," Lebanon coach Brian Kindell said. "In each of those years, we played three very good softball teams and the breaks just didn't go our way.
"This year is no different. We have to pitch well, play defense and do the little things, which we've done pretty consistently all year. If we do those things, we'll have a chance to win."
Lebanon will have to contend with Colerain pitcher Emily Schwaeble, the strikeout leader in the GMC with 238. Kindell said the Warriors will have to show discipline at the plate and not chase Schwaeble's out pitch, her rise-ball.
"We're going to have to force Schwaeble to pitch her rise-ball into the strike zone," Kindell said. "We can't make it easy for her by chasing high pitches. She's a great pitcher, but we can't help her out.
"In addition, we've got play mistake-free on defense. Colerain has scored a lot of runs and they have pretty good team speed."
Lebanon reached the district finals with a pair of wins in sectional play last week, beating Springfield North 3-0 and defeating Fairborn in the sectional finals, 4-1.
Chelsea Kaunert struck out a season-high 12 batters in the win over Fairborn, while Aly Manwaring delivered a two-run smash to break the game open.
"We haven't hit the ball real well in the last couple games," Kindell said. "We've stranded a lot of runners. We can't afford to do that against Colerain. If we get a chance, we have to take advantage of it."
Contact this reporter at (513) 696-4526 or shayes@coxohio.com.
