The Pymatuning Valley Lady Lakers made the trip to Grand Valley on Monday evening and left little doubt, rolling to a 13-1 victory over the Mustangs in six innings to improve to 6-1 in NAC Stars divisional play and 8-5 overall. It was a complete team effort from top to bottom, with the offense spreading the wealth across the entire lineup and Kailee Reynolds handling business in the circle.
PV wasted no time getting on the board against their rivals, plating two runs in the first inning before adding single runs in the second and third to build a comfortable 4-0 cushion. Kailee Reynolds doubled to center field to push the lead to 4-0 after three, and the Lakers kept chipping away. Macie Payne provided the highlight of the early going with a solo home run to left field in the fifth, her second homer of the season, extending the lead to 6-1 after Grand Valley had scratched across their lone run in the fourth.
The sixth inning put the game away for good. McKenna Jordan singled to score a run, Payne added a sacrifice fly, Kaelyn Castle singled to score another, and Izzy Anslow capped the five-run frame with a two-run single to deep center to push the final margin to 13-1. Elizabeth Jernigan led the offense with three hits in four at bats, while Peyton Hudson, Payne, Castle, Reynolds, and Anslow each drove in two runs. Bella Limestoll also contributed two hits in four trips to the plate. PV finished with 16 hits on the night, a sign that the offensive surge from the Harding doubleheader has carried over.
In the circle, Reynolds was sharp all evening — six innings, two hits, one unearned run, zero walks, and seven strikeouts while throwing just 58 pitches. Grand Valley’s Natilly Hostetler went the distance for the Mustangs, a gutsy effort in a tough outing, but the Laker bats were too much to contain.
With the win, Pymatuning Valley moves to 8-5 on the season and 6-1 in the NAC Stars Division and now sits atop the division again after Cardinal’s convincing win over St. John tonight. The Lady Lakers return home Tuesday to face Youngstown East before a pivotal NAC Stars showdown Wednesday against Mathews — a game that could have significant implications in the tight conference standings race.