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The Greater Miami Conference recently announced its all-conference baseball and softball teams. A total of 23 Lakota baseball and softball players were named to the conference’s first and second teams.

In baseball, Lakota East’s Ray Hamilton was named GMC Coach of the Year and Lakota East junior pitcher Mike Conrad shared the honor of GMC Baseball Athlete of the Year with Middletown’s Kyle Schwarber.

Lakota East, which won the GMC title and a state title this spring, had five players (Conrad, senior J.D. Whetsel, senior Jesse Rait, senior Evan Hills and junior Alex Corna) named to the All-GMC First Team and two (senior Mitch Geers and sophomore Jarrett Rindfleisch) named to the All-GMC Second Team.

Lakota West, which won a district title this season, had two players (senior Ryan Oltorik and junior Jake Wagner) named to the All-GMC First Team and three (senior T.J. Belieu, senior Mack Doherty, junior Zack Farmer) named to the All-GMC Second Team.

In softball, Sara Pearson, who has signed on to play at the University of Memphis, was named as the GMC Softball Athlete of the Year. Pearson struck out 264 batters in 164.2 innings and posted a 0.30 earned run average in 2011.

Lakota East, which won the GMC title and a district title in 2011, had five players (Pearson, sophomore Lea Buckenmyer, junior Ainsley Ellison, junior Alyssa Grevenkamp and senior Kelly Hardison) named to the All-GMC First Team and one (junior Kim Rollins) named to the All-GMC Second Team.

Lakota West, which won a regional title this spring, had two players (senior Alex Caudill and junior Amanda Lahti) named to the All-GMC First Team and three (senior Yasmin Battle, senior Melanie Bryan and junior Jessica Burke) named to the All-GMC Second Team.

Posted in: Sports, Spring sports |

Tags: Tags: Ainsley Ellison, Alex Caudill, Alex Corna, Alyssa Grevenkamp, Amanda Lahti, baseball, Evan Hills, Jake Wagner, Jarrett Rindfleisch, Jesse Rait, Jessica Burke, Kelly Hardison, Kim Rollins, Lakota East, Lakota East Sports, Lakota West, Lakota West sports, Lea Buckenmyer, Mack Doherty, Melanie Bryan, Mike Conrad, Mitch Geers, Ray Hamilton, Ryan Oltorik, Sara Pearson, softball, T.J. Belieu, Yasmin Battle, Zach Farmer, Zack Farmer

The Lakota East baseball and softball teams both won their regional semifinal matches on Friday, May 27, by one run. The baseball team defeated Northmont by the score of 1-0, while the softball team defeated Wayne by the score of 3-2.

The Lakota East baseball team won in the 12th inning after a ground ball by senior Zak Kloenne found the outfield and scored senior Craig Thomson, who had doubled off the left field fence earlier in the inning. The win advances the Thunderhawks to their second Division I regional final in school history.

Lakota East (22-7 overall) will now face Butler (27-3 overall) at noon today, May 28, at University of Cincinnati’s Marge Schott Stadium. The Thunderhawks head coach Ray Hamilton had planned to start UC commit senior pitcher Evan Hills this afternoon, but may after to find another starter after Hills threw five scoreless innings of relief on Friday.

Hills (photo from an earlier game this season) combined with starter junior Mike Conrad to throw 12 shutout innings in the win, struck out 12 and to hold Northmont hitters to four hits in 37 at-bats. Conrad and Hills had been the Thunderhawks’ most-used pitchers all season long.

“All I know is we’re playing in the region finals and I don’t care who we’re throwing,” Lakota East coach Ray Hamilton told Cincinnati.com. “I’m not concerned. This team comes to play every day.”

Meanwhile, the Lakota East softball team also had a dramatic win on Friday. After giving up a 2-0 lead, the Thunderhawks found themselves tied 2-2 in the bottom of the seventh inning. That was when senior catcher Kelly Hardison, who holds the single season record for home runs in the Greater Miami Conference, hit her ninth homer of season.

“It felt good right when I hit it,” Hardison told Cincinnati.com of her walk-off home run.”

Lakota East senior pitcher Sara Pearson improved her record to 23-2 and struck out nine batters in the win.

Lakota East (28-2) will play Lakota West (20-4 overall) in the regional final today, May 28, at 5 p.m. at Mason High School. The Firefirds are the only team that has been able to defeat Lakota East all season. Lakota West defeated the Thunderhawks by the score of 2-0 in late March and by the score of 2-0 in early May.

Posted in: Sports, Spring sports |

Tags: Tags: baseball, Craig Thomson, Evan Hills, Kelly Hardison, Lakota East, Lakota East Sports, Mike Conrad, Ray Hamilton, regional final, regional semifinal, regional semifinals, Sara Pearson, softball, Zak Kloenne

Both Lakota East and Fairfield entered Thursday’s matchup with identical 15-2 records within the Greater Miami Conference. When it was over, it was the Thunderhawks who came up on top of a 7-1 victory to claim the 2011 GMC title.

Prior to the game, umpires, coaches and Lakota East’s athletic director Richard Bryant debated on whether to play the game on the muddy field at Lakota East High School.

It was decided that the game, which had already been rescheduled three times, would be played. However, there was an especially muddy spot in right-center field that was chalked off. If a player were to hit it in the designated area, it would be a ground-rule double. That is if an opposing player didn’t catch the fly ball.

After recording the final out. Lakota East players slid, dove and rolled in the muddy area as the team captured its first-ever GMC title.

>>>PHOTOS: FAIRFIELD AT LAKOTA EAST<<<

“It is a nice honor and it is one of our goals every year like it is for every other team in the GMC. We have been fortunate to put things together and get it,” Lakota East head coach Steve Castner said of winning the conference championship.

Prior to the game, Lakota East senior pitcher Sara Pearson pumped up her team.

“We are going to be the first team here to win the GMC,” Pearson said. “We just need to take it. Let’s do it!”

The game didn’t start the way Pearson would have liked, as she gave up a home run to the first batter she faced – Fairfield’s Kelly Browning.

It didn’t take long for the Thunderhawks to strike back. In the bottom half of the first, fellow senior Kelly Hardison ripped a two-out, two-run home run to give Lakota East a 2-1 lead.

“I went up to the plate confident that I had to hit the ball somewhere, I didn’t expect to hit a home run. I wanted to pick up my teammates and Sara, our pitcher, so it felt really good after we hit the home run because I knew we were in this,” Hardison said. “It also helped our team know that we were in it.”

Pearson would go on to retire 13 straight batters and would eventually finish the game without surrendering another run. For the game, Pearson struck out six batters and gave up only two hits after the first inning.

After the game, Pearson was already concentrating on the postseason.

“It feels great, but it is something we need to put behind us in order to focus on Saturday and try to win a state championship,” she said.

Fairfield coach Brenda Stieger likes the Thunderhawks’ chances to win it all.

“I am disappointed in the score and I am disappointed that we didn’t win the league, but that is a very good team,” Stieger said. “I can’t imagine that they shouldn’t win it all.”

Note: Lakota East celebrated Senior Day and honored its three seniors Sara Pearson, Kelly Hardison and Megan Costa. Those seniors and their teammates are scheduled to play Clayton Northmont in a postseason game this Saturday, May 21, at 1 p.m. at Fairmont. Fairfield, which was eliminated in the postseason, finishes the year with a 17-4 overall record and a 15-3 record within the GMC. Meaning, senior catcher Allison Hurst, senior pitcher Erica D’Arcy and senior right fielder Amanda Procter played in their last game at the school.

Posted in: Sports, Spring sports |

Tags: Tags: Brenda Stieger, GMC Championships, Kelly Hardison, Lakota East, Lakota East Sports, Megan Costa, softball, softball Sara Pearson, Steve Castner

A total of 21 student athletes at Lakota East High School were recognized at a special signing event Wednesday, May 18. During the event, each student athlete signed on to play a sport in college.

The student athletes, who were honored, include Abby Tepe (golf – Ashland University), Alex Espinoza (swimming – Urbana University), Alexandria Ancona (Soccer – Otterbein University), Cameron Lee (basketball – Sinclair Community College), Dominic Lindeman (soccer – University of Findlay), Emma Lang (soccer – Indiana Tech University), Evan Hills (baseball – University of Cincinnati), Katie Strahan (tennis – Heidelberg University), Kelly Hardison (College of Mt. St. Joe), Kelsey Chapin (dance team – University of Kentucky), Mark McDaniel (baseball – Marietta College), Megan Costa (basketball – Miami University of Middletown), Mitch Geers (baseball – Marietta College), Patrick Henry (soccer – Wilmington College), Phillip Rawlins (soccer – Wilmington College), R.J. Leppert (basketball – Wilmington College), Rachel Grove (swimming – Cleveland State University), Scott Duncan (football – Wilmington College), Tanner Staiger (football – Georgetown College), Wesley Meyer (volleyball – University of Windsor) and Jalen Goodwin (basketball – College of Wooster).

Earlier this year, Lakota East recognized 10 additional senior athletes who were accepting college scholarship offers.

For more on the earlier signing, visit WestChesterBuzz.com’s story “Lakota East Signing Day: 10 student athletes honored.”

Photo provided by Barb Trimble of www.TrimPhoto.com. For photos of this ceremony and other Lakota East sporting events visit her sports photo gallery page.

Posted in: Fall sports, Sports, Spring sports, Winter Sports |

Tags: Tags: Abby Tepe, Alex Espinoza, Alexandria Ancona, Cameron Lee, college signing, Dominic Lindeman, Emma Lang, Evan Hills, Jalen Goodwin, Katie Strahan, Kelly Hardison, Kelsey Chapin, Lakota East, Lakota East Sports, Mark McDaniel, Megan Costa, National Signing Day, Patrick Henry, R.J. Leppert, Rachel Grove, Scott Duncan, signing, Signing Day, Tanner Staiger, Wesley Meyer

Lakota West and Lakota East high schools recently named their athletes of the week. Lakota East honored Kelly Hardison and Mitch Geers, while Lakota West recognized Kaitlin Jennings and Zack Farmer.

Lakota East’s Kelly Hardison (photo) is a senior member of the state’s top-ranked softball team. According to the Greater Miami Conference website, Hardison has 27 hits in 72 at-bats (.375 batting average), 16 runs, five doubles, one triple, seven home runs and 29 runs batted in this season. Her seven home runs are tied with Kelly Browning of Fairfield for the most in the GMC.

Mitch Geers is a senior member of the GMC champion baseball team at Lakota East. According to the GMC website, Geers has a team-leading .406 batting average (28 hits in 69 at-bats) this season. He is also second on the team with 26 runs batted in. Geers will continue his baseball career at Marietta College.

Lakota West junior pitcher Zack Farmer was honored after his performance in Thursday’s postseason win against Anderson. Farmer was 4-for-4 at the plate and drove in three runs in the 6-3 win against the No. 4 seed Anderson Redskins. Lakota West is the No. 8 seed in its region. Farmer would finish the game on the mound, getting the final two outs to secure the win. According to the GMC website, Farmer has a .381 batting average and a 2.36 earned average this season.

Kaitlin Jennings is a senior member of the Lakota West girls’ lacrosse team. On Friday, Jennings scored four goals in a 14-11 win against Mairemont. According to westfirebirds.com, she was a dominant presence in the midfield as the Firebirds swept to three more wins this week (Anderson, Centerville, and Mariemont) raising the team record to 13-1 and a No. 5 state ranking. Jennings scored a total of 16 goals and had three assists last week. Jennings will continue her lacrosse career at St. Bonaventure University.

(Season statistics through Sunday, May 15)

Posted in: Sports, Spring sports |

Tags: Tags: baseball, Kaitlin Jennings, Kelly Hardison, Lakota East, Lakota East Sports, Lakota West, Lakota West sports, Mitch Geers, softball, Zack Farmer

The Lakota East and Lakota West softball teams advanced to district title games with wins on Monday, May 16. Lakota East defeated Fairborn by the score of 10-0 in five innings, while Lakota West edged Springfield by the score of 3-1.

Lakota East (24-2 overall, 15-2 in the Greater Miami Conference) received another strong performance from its senior pitcher Sara Pearson, who improved her record to 19-2 and struck out eight batters in the postseason victory. Pearson (2-for-4), junior Alyssa Grevenkamp (3-for-4, 3B), senior Kelly Hardison (2-for-2), freshman Gracie Sprockett (2B, 2 RBIs) and junior Kim Rollins (2-for-4, 2 RBIs) led the Thunderhawks at the plate.

Meanwhile, Lakota West (18-4 overall, 15-3 in the GMC) senior pitcher Alex Caudill improved her record to 12-2 on the year.

In the postseason the Thunderhawks will face Clayton Northmont in its district final game, which will be played at 1 p.m. at Fairmont High School this Saturday, May 21. This Wednesday, however, Lakota East will host Fairfield (17-3 overall, 15-2 in the GMC) in a late regular season game that will decide the 2011 GMC championship.

Lakota West is scheduled to play its district championship game against Ursuline Academy (13-6 overall, 6-3 in the Girls Greater Cincinnati League) this Saturday at 1 p.m. at Lakota East High School.

Baseball – Lakota East 7, Kings 4 – The Thunderhawks defeated Kings by the score of 7-4 on Monday in what was a late regular season matchup between the two schools. Senior J.D. Whetsel (2-for-3, 2B), sophomore Jarret Rindfleisch (2-for-4), Rait (2B, 2 RBI), junior Blake Wilder (2 runs), senior Brian Evans (2B, 2 RBIs) and senior Zak Kloenne (2 RBIs) led Lakota East at the plate. Lakota East is scheduled to face Clermont Northeastern at 5 p.m. today. On Thursday, May 19, the Thunderhawks will face GMC foe Sycamore in the district semifinals (postseason) at 5 p.m. at Harrison High School. Lakota East (18-7 overall, 13-5 in the GMC) has already played Sycamore (11-7 overall, 10-7 in the GMC) twice this month (May 6-7) and won both games (5-4 in extra innings and 10-7).

Baseball – Lakota West 4, Springboro 3 – In a late regular season matchup, the Firebirds defeated Springboro by the score of 4-3 on Monday. Junior Zack Farmer (2-for-3, 2B), senior Ryan Oltporik (2-for-3, 3B) and junior Troy Dombart (2-for-3, 3B) led Lakota West at the plate. Lakota West will face GMC rival Mason in the district semifinals this Thursday, May 19, at 5 p.m. at Oak Hills High School. Lakota West (15-10 overall, 9-9 in the GMC) has already lost to Mason (15-9 overall, 9-9 in the GMC) twice this month – by the score of 12-3 May 4 and by the score of 7-1 on May 7.

Posted in: Sports, Spring sports |

Tags: Tags: Alex Caudill, Alyssa Grevenkamp, Blake Wilder, Brian Evans, daily sports roundup, Gracie Sprockett, J.D. Whetsel, Jarrett Rindfleisch, Kelly Hardison, Kim Rollins, Lakota East, Lakota East Sports, Lakota West, Lakota West sports, Ryan Oltporik, Sara Pearson, Troy Dombart, Zack Farmer, Zak Kloenne

The final Ohio High Softball Coaches Association poll was released this week and the Lakota East Thunderhawks remained in the No. 1 spot. Locally, Glen Este (No. 5) was the only other school to be included in the latest statewide poll.

The Lakota East softball team also finished in the No. 1 spot in the final Cincinnati Enquirer’s coaches’ poll. The rest of the top five included Glen Este (No. 2), Fairfield (No. 3), Lakota West (No. 4) and Milford (No. 5).

Lakota East (23-2 overall, 15-2 in the Greater Miami Conference) is currently tied with Fairfield (17-2 overall, 15-2 in the GMC) atop the GMC standings. The Thunderhawks only two losses this season came against rival Lakota West.

Senior pitcher Sara Pearson, who has complied an 18-2 record this season, leads the Thunderhawks. She also leads the GMC in earned average, wins and strikeouts. Pearson has also performed well at the plate (.388 batting average). Through Wednesday, Pearson leads all Thunderhawk starters in on-base percentage (.463) and runs batted in (29).

Hitting directly behind Pearson in the lineup, in the cleanup spot (fourth in the order), senior catcher Kelly Hardison leads the team with seven home runs and is second with 28 runs batted in. Through Wednesday, she is currently hitting .362 and has a .416 on-base percentage.

Five other starters, Ainsley Ellison (.509), Alyssa Grevenkamp (.324), Kim Rollins (.344) and Lea Buckenmyer (.384) all have batting averages greater than .300 this season (through Wednesday).

After today’s game against Fairfield, Lakota East can focus back on the postseason. The Thunderhawks have already won two games this postseason and will play Fairborn (15-8 overall, 6-4 within the Greater Western Ohio Conference) at Fairmont High School on Monday, May 16, at 5 p.m.

Posted in: Sports, Spring sports |

Tags: Tags: Ainsley Ellison, Alyssa Grevenkamp, Cincinnati Enquirer Coaches Poll, Kelly Hardison, Kim Rollins, Lakota East, Lakota East Sports, Lea Buckenmyer, Sara Pearson, softball, softball rankings

Lakota East senior pitcher Sara Pearson, who has signed on to play softball with the University of Memphis, improved her record to 18-2 this season and struck out 12 batters in the Thunderhawks’ 5-1 win against Oak Hills on Thursday.

Pearson also went 2-for-4 at the plate. Her teammates senior Kelly Hardison (2-for-4) and junior Alyssa Grevenkamp (2-for-4, 3B) also performed well at the plate.

The win improves Lakota East’s record to 23-2 overall and 15-2 in the Greater Miami Conference. The Thunderhawks will play Fairfield (17-2 overall, 15-2 in the GMC) today at 5 p.m. for the opportunity to win their first-ever GMC title.

Baseball – Lakota West 6, Anderson 3 – No. 8 seed Lakota West upset No. 4 seed Anderson with a 6-3 postseason win on Thursday. Junior Zack Farmer led Lakota West by going 4-for-4 with a triple and three runs batted in. The win advances the Firebirds (14-10 overall, 9-9 in the GMC) to the district semifinals where they will play the No. 7-seeded Mason Comets (14-9 overall, 9-9 in the GMC) next Thursday, May 19, at Oak Hills High School at 5 p.m.

Baseball – Lakota East 10, Western Brown 2 – The GMC champion Thunderhawks advanced in the postseason after defeating Western Brown by the score of 10-2. Junior pitcher Mike Conrad got the win and struck out 15 batters. Senior J.D. Whetsel led the Thunderhawks at the plate by going 3-for-4 and driving in two runs. Lakota East (17-7 overall, 13-5 in the GMC) will now play Sycamore (11-7 overall, 10-7 in the GMC) next Thursday at Harrison High School at 5 p.m.

Posted in: Sports, Spring sports |

Tags: Tags: Alyssa Grevenkamp, baseball, J.D. Whetsel, Kelly Hardison, Lakota East, Lakota East Sports, Lakota West, Lakota West sports, Mike Conrad, Sara Pearson, softball, Zack Farmer

Lakota East remained ranked No. 1 in the state in the latest Ohio High School Softball Coaches Association poll. Lakota East received nine first-place votes and totaled 111 points in the poll.

Gahanna Lincoln, which is a few miles east of Columbus, fell from No. 2 to No. 3 and had a total of 78 points. Elyria, which is about 30 miles west of Cleveland, moved up from No. 3 to No. 2 and had two first-place votes and totaled 92 points in the poll.

Locally, Glen Este (No. 4) and Lebanon (No. 9) were included in the latest statewide poll. Glen Este (65 points) moved from No. 5 from last week’s poll and Lebanon (24 points) moved down from No. 8 from last week’s poll.

Currently, Lakota East is No. 1 in the Cincinnati Enquirer’s coaches’ poll. The Thunderhawks have a total of 116 points and eight first-place votes, while the No. 2 team, Glen Este, has a total of 109 points and four first-place votes.

Lakota East is 15-1 overall and 9-1 within the Greater Miami Conference. Its only loss, which was against rival Lakota West, came in its second game of the season. West (9-3 overall, 8-2 in the GMC) is currently ranked No. 3 in the Enquirer poll. The two rivals are scheduled to play tomorrow, April 28, at 4:30 p.m.

The Thunderhawks are led by their senior pitcher Sara Pearson, who has complied a 12-1 record this season. Pearson also has 141 strikeouts in 80 innings and a 0.44 earned run average. She has also performed well at the plate with a .517 on-base percentage and a .447 batting average. Pearson has 21 hits in 47 at-bats, 16 runs, three doubles, four home runs and 17 runs batted in.

Hitting directly behind Pearson in the lineup, in the cleanup spot (fourth in the order), senior catcher Kelly Hardison leads the team with six home runs and 23 runs batted in. She is currently hitting .396 and has a .463 on-base percentage.

Five other starters, Ainsley Ellison (.513), Alyssa Grevenkamp (.360), Kim Rollins (.370) and Lea Buckenmyer (.306) all have batting averages greater than .300 this season.

Right now, Lakota East trails Fairfield (10-1 overall, 10-1 in the GMC) in the GMC standings. The two teams finish the season against each other May 4 at 4:30 p.m. at Lakota East High School.

Posted in: Sports, Spring sports |

Tags: Tags: Ainsely Ellison, Alyssa Grevenkamp, Cincinnati Enquirer Coaches Poll, Kelly Hardison, Kim Rollins, Lakota East, Lakota East Sports, Lea Buckenmyer, rankings, Sara Pearson, softball, softball rankings

In the first Ohio High School Softball Coaches Association poll of the spring sports season, Lakota East received seven first-place votes and was ranked as the state’s best softball team.

Lakota East earned a total of 91 points. Gahanna Lincoln, which is a few miles east of Columbus, was ranked second with 67 points. Locally, Glen Este (No. 6 – 32 points) and Lebanon (No. 7 – 29 points) also made the top ten.

Gahanna Lincoln will have an opportunity to earn more points this Saturday, April 23, when it faces Lakota East at the Valley of Thunder in Symmes Valley.

Currently, Lakota East is No. 1 in the Cincinnati Enquirer’s coaches’ poll. The Thunderhawks have a total of 138 points and eight first-place votes, while the No. 2 team, Glen Este, has a total of 133 points and five first-place votes.

Lakota East is 14-1 overall and 9-1 within the Greater Miami Conference. Its only loss, which was against rival Lakota West, came in its second game of the season. West is currently ranked No. 4 in the Enquirer poll. The two rivals were scheduled to play this afternoon at noon, but the game has been postponed.

The Thunderhawks are led by their senior pitcher Sara Pearson, who has complied a 11-1 record this season. Pearson also has 129 strikeouts in 73 innings and a 0.48 earned run average. She has also performed well at the plate with a .556 on-base percentage and a .488 batting average. Pearson has 21 hits in 43 at-bats, 16 runs, three doubles, four home runs and 17 runs batted in.

Hitting directly behind Pearson in the lineup, in the cleanup spot (fourth in the order), senior catcher Kelly Hardison leads the team with five home runs and 22 runs batted in. She is currently hitting .370 and has a .420 on-base percentage.

Five other starters, Ainsley Ellison (.528), Alyssa Grevenkamp (.362), Kim Rollins (.357) and Lea Buckenmyer (.326) all have batting averages greater than .300 this season.

Right now, Lakota East is tied with Fairfield (9-1 overall, 9-1 in the GMC) atop the GMC standings. The two teams finish the season against each other May 4 at 4:30 p.m. at Lakota East High School.

Posted in: Sports, Spring sports |

Tags: Tags: Ainsely Ellison, Alyssa Grevenkamp, Cincinnati Enquirer Coaches Poll, Kelly Hardison, Kim Rollins, Lakota East, Lakota East Sports, Lea Buckenmyer, rankings, Sara Pearson, softball, softball rankings