Minerva baseball and softball deliver wild week

If you’re looking for a calm, uneventful week in Minerva sports… this wasn’t it.

Between a rivalry split on the baseball diamond and a softball team that treated the scoreboard like a suggestion, the Minerva Lions packed plenty into a few days, and made sure nobody got bored along the way.

Begin with baseball, where Minerva squared off with Eastern Buckeye Conference rival West Branch and walked away with a split. And a statement.

Game one? Tough sledding.

The Lions ran into a dominant pitching performance in an 8-0 loss April 8, managing just one hit against a West Branch starter who struck out nine. Braydon Wood provided the lone bright spot with a double, but offense was hard to come by.

To Minerva’s credit, the pitching kept things close early. Kaden Kandel worked through more than four innings, allowing just two earned runs before one big inning created separation. It was one of those games where you’re hanging around… until suddenly you’re not.

Then came the response.

One day later, the Lions flipped everything with a 4-2 win, and this time, Wood was the one in control.

Seven innings. Eleven strikeouts. One earned run. That’s not just a bounce-back. That’s an ace taking over.

Wood attacked hitters all game, and when West Branch threatened, Minerva’s defense stepped up, including a key early double play to kill momentum. At the plate, the Lions delivered just enough: Brennan Barnes came through with an RBI double, while Nate Linkous and Lane Tarbet helped generate offense in key spots.

Minerva closed the series at 3-3 overall and 1-1 in conference play—right in the middle of the fight.

Softball

Now, if baseball was controlled and efficient, softball was… absolute mayhem.

Minerva opened the week with a 13-7 loss to West Branch April 8, but not without some punch. Delaney Sell, Maddie Crawford, and Adrianna Kashdan each collected two hits, while Crawford and Kylie Hannen drove in two runs apiece, showing early signs of what this lineup could do.

Then came a tone-setter.

Against Salem the next day, Sell was dominant, striking out 13 in a complete-game 8-2 win while allowing just three hits. When your pitcher is dealing like that, everything else tends to fall into place. Weaver added a triple and single to spark the offense.

From there? Things escalated.

The Lions hit a rough stretch against Conotton Valley and Hiland, where big innings snowballed into lopsided losses. The kind of games where one inning turns into five runs… then ten… then you stop asking questions.

But then came Saturday, and everything flipped.

In the opener against Sandy Valley, Minerva’s offense exploded in a 14-4 win, piling up 13 hits and scoring in four different innings. Rachel Weaver was everywhere with three hits, four runs scored, and a home run, while Sell helped her own cause with two hits and two RBIs. Gabby Kashdan added three RBIs, and the lineup kept the pressure on from top to bottom.

That’s the version of this team that’s dangerous.

Game two? A reminder that softball doesn’t believe in consistency.

Sandy Valley answered with a 19-4 win, using multiple big innings to take control early. Minerva still found some offense; Hannen drove in two runs, and Crawford added a pair of RBIs, but couldn’t slow the momentum.

And just like that, the doubleheader split.