‘C’ champs
Westfield scores late, edges Eagles for Section VI title
Pictured, from the left, Westfield’s Keara Kincaid, Drew Ernewein, Tanleigh Bestine and Brynn Ernewein celebrate after receiving the Section VI Class C softball championship plaque at Allegany-Limestone High School on Tuesday. OBSERVER Photo by Christian Storms
Wolverines’ Eva Gnadzinski delivers to the plate. OBSERVER Photo by Christian Storms
Westfield’s Brynn Ernewein and Keara Kincaid are all smiles after scoring in the seventh inning of Tuesday’s Section VI Class C championship softball game at Allegany-Limestone High School. OBSERVER Photo by Christian Storms
Eagles’ Cayzlee Johnson delivers to the plate. OBSERVER Photo by Christian Storms
Pictured, from the left, Westfield’s Keara Kincaid, Drew Ernewein, Tanleigh Bestine and Brynn Ernewein celebrate after receiving the Section VI Class C softball championship plaque at Allegany-Limestone High School on Tuesday. OBSERVER Photo by Christian Storms
Wolverines’ Eva Gnadzinski delivers to the plate. OBSERVER Photo by Christian Storms
Westfield’s Brynn Ernewein and Keara Kincaid are all smiles after scoring in the seventh inning of Tuesday’s Section VI Class C championship softball game at Allegany-Limestone High School. OBSERVER Photo by Christian Storms
Eagles’ Cayzlee Johnson delivers to the plate. OBSERVER Photo by Christian Storms
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ALLEGANY - With three-time OBSERVER/Post-Journal Player of the Year Haleigh Dellow in the circle, Westfield won back-to-back Section VI Class D championships in 2022 and 2023.
With Dellow graduated and off to George Mason University this year, some may have thought the Wolverines would've taken a step back - especially moving up to Class C.
Not so fast.
Eva Gnadzinski and her teammates made sure of it.
Westfield's junior right-hander tossed a one-hitter, striking out seven while walking five and the fifth-seeded Wolverines broke open a 0-0 game with three seventh-inning runs en route to a 3-0 shutout of No. 2 Chautauqua Lake in the Class C championship game Tuesday evening at Allegany-Limestone High School.
"I'm proud of the girls because there was that shadow hovering over them, and they walked out of it a couple of days ago," Westfield head coach Shawn Gnadzinski said. " ... I told them to keep it close and we'll find a way to win."
Next up for Westfield, which lost to Friendship/Scio in the past two Class D state quarterfinals, is a 7:30 p.m. Friday date with Section V's champion in the Far West Regional at Webster-Schroeder High School.
Bloomfield and Dundee/Bradford were rained out Tuesday. They will play for the Rochester area's title at 6 p.m. today at Honeoye Falls-Lima.
"I really would've liked a shot at them for a third time ... It's the deepest team we've ever had, but the girls always made it about the pitcher (Nevaeh) Ross," Coach Gnadzinski said of Friendship/Scio. " ... Just not having to focus on that this year is really going to help us. I really like the surprise and the competition that's coming ahead."
Eagles junior Cayzlee Johnson matched Gnadzinski out for out through the first six innings, but defensive troubles in the top of the seventh inning cost her team the game.
"I thought Cayzlee pitched well overall. She pitches outs and trusts the defense behind her. She threw great today," Chautauqua Lake coach Katie Yudin said. " ... She did her job on the mound, we just didn't get that one play in the field."
Westfield's Sydney Hotchkiss singled to left field to open the seventh inning and was bunted over to second by Madyson Burgess.
"If we were going to execute one of those," Coach Gnadzinski said of the bunt, "it had to be perfect."
After a strikeout and a walk, Brynn Ernewein hit a grounder to short that could've been the third out of the inning, but after looking at second base for a forceout, Chautauqua Lake's shortstop threw high to first base, allowing Hotchkiss to score.
"Her saying is 'live, laugh, love.' I say it wrong every time. I happened to say it right this time and she said, 'It's going to happen, you said it right,'" Coach Gnadzinski said of Ernewein. "It all worked out for us."
With runners at second and third, No. 9 hitter Arielle Corbett lifted a pop-up behind the Eagles second baseman that fell in for a two-run single.
"She is jacked up and I have to get her to take some breaths and slow it down," Coach Gnadzinski said. "The kid, with two strikes, has been putting the ball in play. What a big hit she came up with for us."
Chautauqua Lake's Karagan Fairbank walked to open the bottom of the seventh, but was quickly erased on a double-play lineout before Gnadzinski struck out the final batter of the game.
"Westfield is a good team. You have to know going into the game that basically it's going to come down to one run," Yudin said. " ... We were hitting the ball, we just couldn't find a gap."
Neither team got a runner past second base in the opening six innings.
Chautauqua Lake lined into a double play in the bottom of the first inning; Westfield got a runner to second with two outs in the second inning; and Gnadzinski pitched around a pair of walks in the bottom of the sixth inning.
"Her nickname is 'Bulldog' and she was definitely a bulldog today," an emotional Coach Gnadzinski said of his daughter. "I'm just so proud of the kid because everyone thought she had to fill Haleigh's shoes, but you know what, hers are just fine."
In the end, the Eagles' second error of the game proved to be the difference.
"They got batters on in the right situation and made the plays," Yudin said, "and we didn't."