WHEELING — Trinity Christian’s first foray into the OVAC softball tournament didn’t pan out the way either head coach Colony Hopkins or her team hoped.
Eight errors and a game performance from Conotton Valley hurler Madison Kelley kept the Warriors’ batters baffled throughout most of the six-inning affair.
The result? The Rockets improved to 13-3 win an 11-1 victory Monday evening at Ben’s Field in Wheeling. The top seed, Conotton Valley is going for its fourth straight OVAC 1A tournament championship.
Trinity fell to 11-8, but enjoyed dipping its toes in the OVAC tournament waters for the first time after trudging through one win in two seasons as Hopkins helped revive the program in 2022 after a near-decade-long hiatus.
“We just started the program back up, so to be able to make it here is a big accomplishment for our team and our program,” Hopkins said. “Our lineup is mostly freshmen and sophomores.”
Kelley, the Rockets’ No. 2 pitcher, managed to keep Trinity hitters off-balance with some decent velocity, solid control and an unorthodox pitching motion. She struck out 15 batters against four walks while limiting the designated visitors to one run on three hits.
“We usually need just one trip through the lineup to get a read on a pitcher, but it took us a bit longer against (Kelley),” Hopkins admitted. “She has a bit of an unorthodox delivery. She had great control and honestly, I was surprised she walked four of our hitters.”
A couple of Trinity hitters finally got a read on Kelley, including leadoff hitter Peyton Moore, who crushed a fifth-inning offering deep into right field, bouncing off the fence for a stand-up double. A couple more feet and Moore would have been trotting the bases, making her way home.
As it were, she crossed the plate regardless as a double from Paige Hopkins brought her teammate home for Trinity’s lone run.
Paige Hopkins took the loss for Trinity, striking out one and walking the same in six innings of work. Of that 11-run total, only four were earned.
The errors took their toll and against a seasoned team like Conotton Valley, the Rockets made them pay.
Delaney Peters did the most damage, driving in two runs with a pair of doubles and singles, going 4-of-4 on the evening. Catcher Delilah Williams drove in the most runs with five, making the most of a pair of base hits.
Madison Kelley aided her own cause with a run-scoring double.
The Warriors hit the road again for two games with sectionals approaching, first heading into Wetzel County for a meeting with Valley, before turning its attention toward Grafton on Wednesday.
Coach Hopkins noted that as her team continues to improve and the program — which currently stands at 20 players with an actual junior varsity roster — continues to grow, she plans to build up the Warriors’ schedule.
“The last couple of years, most people probably didn’t even know we had a team,” she noted. “And we didn’t know about Conotton Valley until this season. Those first couple years we just wanted to get games in as our program had only what I considered nine and a half girls as we had to share one with the tennis team. But we have 20 girls now and we’re scheduling a full slate. We went to a tournament in Myrtle Beach and played well against some larger teams.
“The future looks bright.”
By MIKE HUGHES/The Dominion Post
BOX SCORE
OVAC Class A Semifinal
Conotton Valley 11, Trinity Christian 1
Trinity Christian 000 010 – 1 3 8
Conotton Valley 303 023 – 11 9 0
T – P.Hopkins lp (1SO, 1BB) and Dunham. Moore D; P.Hopkins D, rbi; Flecker S.
C – Kelley wp (15SO, 4BB) and Williams. Peters 2S, 2D, 2rbi; Kelley D, rbi; Williams 2S, 5rbi;.
