RICHMOND - The Steubenville Big Red softball team punched its ticket to a date with Indian Creek thanks to a solid 7-0 victory over Beaver Local in the Ohio Division II Eastern District sectional tournament at the Richmond/Edison Sports Complex at Jefferson Lake State Park.
Big Red coach Dave Ziarko had said late in the season that things were coming along with his young team, and a solid pitching performance by sophomore Anna Perrino Saturday locked things together.
She struck out a season-high 11, including the first five and eight of the first 12 batters she faced and did not walk a batter.
Perrino had a perfect game through four innings before allowing a single to start the fifth. She finished with a three-hitter.
Sierra Fields led Big Red's offense with two hits, including a two-run bomb in the second inning, scoring Allyson Freeman, who reached on a fielder's choice.
Fields later singled in Steubenville's four-run sixth inning.
Shanna Roberts reached on an error and Casey Gentile singled to start that sixth inning. Freeman sacrificed them over and Fields followed with her RBI single. Mytia Barker's RBI double plated Gentile and Carmie Biasi's groundout scored Fields. Barker came home on an error.
Steubenville, which lost to Beaver Local 13-5 early in the season, finished with seven hits and played error-free defense.
Big Red will meet Indian Creek at 5 p.m. Monday on the same field.
Steubenville 7, Beaver Local 0
Steubenville 120 004 0 - 7 7 0
Beaver Local 000 000 0 - 0 3 6
STEUBENVILLE: Perrino (WP, 11K, 0BB) and Barker; Fields S, HR, 2rbi; Barker D, rbi; Biasi S; Perrino 2S; Gentile S.
BEAVER LOCAL: Messenger (LP, 3K, 3BB) and Witherow; Frampton S; Riley S; Prologo S.
