By Audrey Carrico
NKyTribune sports reporter
In a tense 9th Region softball semifinal matchup on Monday, the Notre Dame Pandas trailed 3-2 with two outs in the bottom of the seventh inning at Thomas More University.
After Conner senior pitcher Mollie Sharp gave up a single to Notre Dame freshman Addison Zinser that tied the score, junior shortstop Ava Auberger stepped up to the plate for one of the most critical at bats of her career.
“I came in and I wanted to be the one that walked it off,” Auberger said.
She did just that. Hitting a run-scoring single that squeezed through the infield, Auberger gave the Pandas a 4-3 victory that puts them in the 9th Region tournament championship game against Highlands at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday.
“We haven’t been in a game like this for years,” said Notre Dame junior pitcher Abby Turnpaugh, who had six strikeouts while Sharp had nine.
After a quick first couple innings, Notre Dame opened the scoring in the third when a double by Auberger gave the Pandas a 2-0 lead.
The Cougars were quick to respond. Junior Ciarra Morgan hit a single with the bases loaded to bring in a run and Ellie Ortiz followed with a strategic bunt to tie the score, 2-2, in the top of the fourth.
“Their pitcher (Sharp) is a really good pitcher and in the first game we kind of struggled a little bit,” Auberger said, referring to a 1-0 win over the Cougars in April. “In this game, I feel like we kind of just listened to our coaches and you know what … we won.”
Both teams left runners stranded in the next few innings and the score remained tied up until the top of the seventh when Conner took its first lead of the game.
With two on and two out, sophomore Breanna Meredith hit a single down the line to make it 3-2 and give the Cougars a much needed momentum shift. But they weren’t able to make their first appearance in a 9th Region championship game since 2013 due to Auberger’s game-winning hit.
“It’s been a roller coaster (season). I mean we started off great but we were the underdog,” said Auberger. “Nobody respected us. Now that we’ve gained that respect back we’re here to win this thing now.”
The Pandas currently have a 19-7 record, their best since 2019. Their next goal is claiming their first 9th Region title since 2017.
“This is fun,” said Turnpaugh. “We don’t want to make the moment bigger than what it is, we embrace the crowd.”
10th Region softball tournament
Campbell County opened the 10th Region softball tournament at Scott High School with a 21-6 win over George Rogers Clark in four innings and advances to the semifinals for the second straight year.
The Camels (16-9) will face two-time defending champion Harrison County (33-6) in a semifinal game at 5 p.m. Tuesday. Harrison County opened the season with a 5-2 win at Campbell County and hasn’t lost to a 10th Region opponent over the last two years.
In another first-round game on Monday, Montgomery County knocked off Brossart, 11-0, in five innings. The Mustangs finish the season with an 11-21 record.