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The old saying “He who lifts up the sword will die by the sword” has certainly proven true on the baseball field for the Mitchell U15 Vosper Hornets.

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On August 11, Mitchell played in the Huron-Perth League A championship game against host Innerkip, suffering a heartbreaking 4-3 loss as the Eagles broke a 3-3 tie and scored the winning point with an out in the bottom of the seventh and final inning to win the title in dramatic fashion.

Coincidentally, the Hornets had achieved a similar victory just hours earlier, scoring 6-5 in the second half of the seventh inning against #2 Exeter in the semifinals, giving them a chance at a title they never imagined possible at the start of the season.

The U15 division at Huron-Perth featured 20 teams, including two from Mitchell, both of which were placed in the 10-team North division for the regular season. The Vosper squad entered the final round in fourth place. In the 10-team Class A championship team, Mitchell faced top-ranked Elma #1 in its first round tournament, losing 9-8 on August 3 after the Express defeated the Hornets in the bottom of the sixth.

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The Hornets struggled on defense, committing seven errors, but still managed to keep up with the first-place team as starter Rhylee Chessell and reliever Sage Dow pitched effectively for four innings. Kate Nolan and Chessell hit triples to highlight the offense, and Kinslee Horan and Nolan combined for an excellent double play in the fourth inning.

Later in the day, Mitchell faced #1 Innerkip – the top team in the South Division – and allowed just four hits and seven walks thanks to the pitching duo of Hallee Vosper and Chessell, winning 7-3. Two runs in the fourth and fifth innings allowed the Hornets to pull away and take the win. Paisley Curran had two hits, while Brynn Wolfe reached base three times, including a bunt single, to lead the offense.

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The three teams all had the same record of 1-1, but Mitchell received a playoff bye due to fewest runs allowed against her before knocking out Exeter #2 in dramatic fashion on August 11. Dow pitched five strikeouts and allowed three hits in her five innings before Chessell got the win in relief. Vosper had a double and two singles, while Wolfe hit a triple to cap a two-run fourth inning. Hannah Coursol and Horan each had two hits, with Coursol Nolan getting the winning hit on a sacrifice fly after she opened the final inning with a walk.

The A final against Innerkip #2 featured a pitcher’s duel, with Chessell holding out to the end and suffering an unfortunate loss. She allowed just three hits, walked one and struck out six strikeouts. The Innerkip pitcher finished the game with 13 strikeouts, but the Eagles trailed 3-2 early and tied the game in the sixth inning to set the stage for the seventh inning. A leadoff double to third base was sacrificed in the final inning, where she scored on an infield hit to second base that was too late to hit the runner at the plate.

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Eisler’s U15 team, meanwhile, competed in the B Championship tournament, where they lost their round robin matches against two Goderich teams by scores of 13-6 and 12-6. In the playoffs, the Hornets lost to Innerkip #3 by scores of 7-4.

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The S. Elliott Masonry U9 girls fastball team competed in its year-end tournament in Seaforth and Winthrop and won a silver medal in the B Division on August 10 and 11.

Mitchell beat Exeter #2 4-1 in the opener. It got off to a slow start, but in the third inning Shaylyn Smith hit a double and Brooklyn Smith got another double to take a 1-0 lead. In the next inning, Maria Marshall and Madison Ahrens doubled and two RBIs increased the lead to 4-0. Esme Bakewell and Brooklyn Smith both pitched two innings, while the Smith sisters made excellent defensive plays.

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Next, Willa Schoonderwoerd hit a double against Goderich and Abilene Gordner had an RBI for their only run in a 7-1 loss. Also of note, Emma Elliott made a great defensive out at first base. In their third game of the day against Stratford, the Hornets were down 2-0 but fought back with six hits and three runs in the bottom of the first inning to win 5-3. Lilah Payne-McCleary, Shaylyn Smith, Bakewell, Gordner and Marshall all scored, while Payne-McCleary made a key out at first base to slow Stratford’s comeback in the bottom inning.

The girls finished their fourth game of the day under the lights against North Middlesex, a rare occurrence at this age, but they shone and won 4-3 to cap off a great day. Amellia Vallance, Elliott and Ahrens all pitched during the game to give the regular pitchers a break. Vallance had a big hit in the first inning to score two runs and build an early lead, but it didn’t last long. In the final inning, North Middlesex rallied and scored three runs to put the Hornets behind. Marshall got a hit with the bases loaded that gave Payne-McCleary and Brooklyn Smith the walk-off win, while Olivia Eidt and Vallance made excellent defensive plays.

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The next day, Mitchell faced Goderich again in the B final. Ahrens opened the game with a solid hit but was unable to score. Brooklyn Smith put up a great defensive effort at first base, but Goderich followed up with four more hits to take a 4-0 lead, eventually leading to an 8-2 loss for Mitchell. Eidt opened the second inning with a hit and scored on Brooklyn Smith’s double, who later scored on Vallance’s double to tie the game at 4-2, but Mitchell was as close as he got.

The coaches said they were proud of the girls’ effort, dedication and progress, which made for a great fastball year.

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Two U13 teams from Mitchell took part in their end of year tournament in Stratford on the weekend of August 9-11, both playing in Division ‘C’.

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Gloor’s U13 team, winless in the regular season, played eight games over three days and finished the season as Division C bronze medalists. For a team with eight first-year players, three of whom had never played before, there was a clear improvement over time.

The team got off to a slow start against Wilmot #3 with a 9-7 loss on Friday night, August 9th, but came back strong the next morning and destroyed Wilmot #2, scoring the maximum five runs in each inning to lead to a 20-7 victory. The onslaught was capped by a three-run triple by Jordyn Schellenberger. The team next played the Hornets from across town and in a back-and-forth game that included a solid three-hitter by Lauryn Montgomery, the Van Nes/Krug U13 team won another close game 10-8.

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Facing Wilmot #2 again, Mitchell pulled out a close 13-10 win and took revenge on Wilmot #3 by taking a convincing 13-3 victory. Next up was Elma #2, a team that had trounced them during league play, and Mitchell continued his run with a 10-3 victory capped by a three-run triple from Emma Upshall. Mitchell then played St. Marys Blue, and Brianne Bauer’s first-inning run-catching performance set the stage for a 15-10 victory that put the Hornets in the semifinals against Sebringville. In a hard-fought battle, Mitchell lost by one run in the final inning with the bases loaded, 10-9, giving the Hornets a well-deserved bronze medal.

Samantha Hamilton and Miranda Scherbarth shared the pitching duties, while Scarlett Gloor and Bauer played an important role behind the plate and kept the number of stolen bases to a minimum. Infielders Lucy McFarlane, Upshall, Montgomery and Schellenberger delivered fantastic catches and excellent plays, while hardly a ball got past the solid outfielder duo Alexandra McKay and Adean Pottle-Tschudi.

The U13s of Van Nes/Krug lost their opening match to the eventual champions from Seaforth 15-5, but then recovered with a 10-8 victory over Mitchell Gloor. Against Zurich in the third match, the Hornets’ patience at bat was rewarded with a 9-8 victory and they were able to qualify for Sunday.

In another well-played game against St. Marys, the Hornets lost 14-12.

Berkley Keyser, Evelyn Ward and Martyna Hartwig shared the pitching load over the weekend.

Coaches said they enjoyed seeing their confidence grow and their skills improve throughout the season.

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