Starting in the West Virginia Little League District 6 Area 2 Tournament, Moorefield All-Stars catapulted to become the Area 2 champion with wins over Mineral County (15-nil) and Hampshire (6-1) with a plethora of firepower and consistent pitching by Naomi Markwood backed by a stellar defense.
Winning the Area 2 title put Moorefield in the driver’s seat entering the District 6 Tournament and directly into the championship game against Area 1 champion Hedgesville.
Hedgesville edged Moorefield with a bases loaded hit to collect the title and state tournament berth with the 3-2 win.
Moorefield bounced right back with a 5-3 victory over Hampshire to grab the District 6 runner-up spot and earned a state tournament ticket.
“I’m incredibly proud of this team, but more so I hope they recognize how strong they are mentally for their age. They have heart and grit, which will take them far on and off the field. The difference between the two games is timely hits and we laid down the bunts against Hampshire. We started a little slower tonight than we like to see, but they’re kids that just played their hearts out the night before, rebounding from a tight loss with no practice time to come back stronger. We made some plays at home against Hedgesville because of their aggressive baserunning style and our girls stayed ready and alert. We had a coaches conference call till about midnight last night discussing some little things after Hedgesville and planning for Hampshire. When you play that tight defensively small things are the only things to improve on, and it sets a high standard for us and each of them when making adjustments in the field. They’re both great ball teams, and seeing Hampshire again was additionally emotional for our girls because many of the girls from both teams are true friends on and off the field, and play together on weekends,” Moorefield Little League 10-12 Softball All-Stars coach Jessica Markwood remarked.
Moorefield pitcher Naomi Markwood recorded over 100 pitches in the District 6 Tournament runner-up contest and met that milestone five times in 20 games during the Little League and All-Star games this season.
This week alone, Markwood tossed over 600 pitches during tournament action as Moorefield kept the eye on the prize going to the state tournament.
The West Virginia Little League 10-12 Softball State Tournament will be held in Chapmanville this week.
During the District 6 Championship, Hedgesville was aggressive on the base path.
However, Moorefield catcher Anna-Leia Champ made two remarkable tags to deny runs.
It was a pitching duel as Markwood led Moorefield in the circle with seven strikeouts and Hedgesville’s Kaylee Hess countered with eight strikeouts.
Moorefield took a 2-nil lead in the third inning as Reagan Funk ripped an RBI double to plate Champ who had reached on an error, then Avelyn Bean notched an RBI sacrifice fly sending Marley Stump home after she got on board with a walk.
Hedgesville cut the deficit in half in the bottom of the third inning as Coraline Shimel smacked an RBI single plating Ariana Pederson.
Moorefield kept Hedgesville from scoring in the fourth inning with two sensational tags at home plate by Champ with alert throws from first baseman Reagan Funk and pitcher Naomi Markwood.
Hedgeville equalized the game in the fifth inning as Sofia Cabreja hit an RBI single.
Kyleigh Albanese smashed a double for Hedgesville in the sixth inning, then two intentional walks were issued to load the bases with one out.
Hess delivered the game winning RBI single on a blooper into left field.
Hampshire took the initial lead in the District 6 runner-up game in the opening frame, but Moorefield answered in the second inning as Champ poked an RBI single up the middle to plate Darah See, who got on board with a walk.
Moorefield commandeered a 5-1 lead in the third inning.
Stump was beaned and Tatum Crites singled on a well-placed bunt, then Hampshire countered with two strikeouts.
Moorefield responded as Markwood smacked a two-run producing single into center field.
See drew a free pass, then Sara Sherman crushed a two-RBI single for the 5-1 advantage.
Hampshire got an RBI double by Charlton in the third inning.
Hampshire tried to rally in the sixth inning, but stared at two quick outs on a pair of amazing catches made by Moorefield shortstop Avelyn Bean.
Hampshire managed to add just one run on an RBI single by Simmons, then Markwood shut the door with a strikeout to seal the win and advance to the state tournament.
