Photo by Kim North Bridgeport’s Hanna Brewer catches the ball for an out at first base Monday night during the annual OVAC Tom Bechtel All-Star Softball Game on Lisa’s Field at the J.B. Chambers I-470 Complex in Elm Grove. Valley’s Michaela Miller was out on the play. West Virginia won the game, 4-2.

ELM GROVE – The old adage that good pitching will beat good hitting any day of the week held true to form Monday night.

West Virginia’s Sophia Lehosit (University) and Eliza Utt (Weir) combined for 14 strikeouts Monday night in a 4-2 doubling up of Ohio in the annual OVAC Tom Bechtel All-Star Softball Game on Lisa’s Field at the J.B. Chambers I-470 Complex.

Lehosit earned the win with nine Ks in the first five innings. Utt fanned five in her four innings of work. Together, they gave up seven singles and walked only one. It helped that both pitched last week in the WVSSAC State Tournament.

“Ohio had a pretty formidable lineup,” West Virginia head coach Herb Minch (Linsly) said. “They had some really good hitters from what they did during the regular season, but our two girls stepped up. We knew Sophia (Lehosit) was pretty good and we faced Eliza. It was a good combo – right and lefty.”

The Mountaineers scored single runs in the second and third innings to stake Lehosit and Co. to a 2-0 lead.

Lehosit’s batterymate, Olivia Masoner, doubled down the line in left with one out in the second. She went to third before racing home on Kaylee White’s (John Marshall) sacrifice fly to center for a 1-0 lead. Brooke’s Jazmyn Wood led off the fourth with a walk and went to second on a wild pitch. A groundout moved her to third and she sprinted home when Kendall Ryan (Madonna) singled through the left side of the infield as the margin increased to 2-0.

West Virginia doubled its lead in the fifth as Masyn Inclan (John Marshall) singled with one out. Bella Rine (Wheeling Central) followed with a single to left and both runners advanced 60 feet on an error. Inclan would score on a wild pitch and Rine came across on a White groundout, making it 4-0.

Ohio finally got on the scoreboard in the top of the sixth as Makayla Mumaw (Caldwell) was hit by a pitch with one out. Kendyl Brandon (Martins Ferry) reached on an infield single before Miranda Cole (Cambridge) lined a single up the middle to score booth runners.

Ohio threatened with two runners on in the top of the ninth with two out, but Utt induced a game-ending grounder to second.

Lehosit led West Virginia’s 10-hit attack with a single and double, while Adalyn Brown (University), daughter of former WVU head football coach Neal Brown, and Maddie Miehle (Wheeling Central) each had a pair of singles.

Ohio had seven different players with a base hit.

HOT SHOTS

– The game took just 1-hour, 53-minutes.

– Umpiring the contest were Kelly Tine (Plate), Donnie Martin (First), Bob Gabel (Second) and Randy Whitlatch (Third).

– Between innings, OVAC Player of the Year plaques were presented to Madonna’s Madi Owens (Class 1A); River’s Ava Wohnhas and Caldwell’s Makayla Mumaw (co-Class 2A); Martins Ferry’s Giana Chirpas (Class 3A); Weir’s Eliza Utt (Class 4A) and Steubenville’s Sadie Edwards (Class 5A).

– The OVAC Coach of the Year award was presented to Beaver Local’s Mark Cashdollar.