ELKVIEW – West Virginia Wesleyan Lady Bobcats delivered a clinical performance on both sides of the ball, shutting out the West Virginia State Yellow Jackets 9–0 in a five-inning mercy-rule victory in Game 1 of a Saturday doubleheader at Herbert Hoover High School.
Junior pitcher Kendall Stoffel was masterful in the circle, throwing a complete-game no-hitter while striking out six and allowing just three walks.
Wesleyan’s offense also shined in the third and fifth innings, putting up four runs and five runs respectively, and racking up nine total hits. The Lady Bobcats were led by the bat of Josi Fix, who went 2-for-3 with a double and three RBIs. Gracie Arnold added a two-run double of her own and drove in three total, while leadoff hitter Alyssa Rohr chipped in with two hits, a stolen base, and an RBI.
After two quiet frames to open the game, the Lady Bobcats erupted in the top of the third. Stoffel ignited the rally with a leadoff double to left-center. Freshman Hallie Dinklocker laid down a bunt single that led to a throwing error and scored Stoffel, giving Wesleyan a 1–0 lead. Alyssa Rohr singled, Dinklocker stole third, and a walk to Andie Dizon loaded the bases.
That set the stage for Fix, who laced a two-run single to left-center to stretch the lead to 3–0. Gracie Arnold followed with a sacrifice fly, and the Lady Bobcats never looked back.
Wesleyan closed the door in the fifth inning with five more runs. A leadoff walk by Lynzee Hague, followed by another free pass to Dizon, set up the meat of the lineup. Fix delivered again with an RBI double, and Arnold followed with a two-RBI double to right-center. Dinklocker added her second hit and second RBI of the game, and Rohr capped the rally with an RBI single to left.
The offensive surge chased starter Kaleigh Murphy (2.1 IP, 4 ER) early, and her replacement, Chloe Treadway, also struggled against the disciplined Bobcat lineup, surrendering five earned runs in relief.
West Virginia State managed just three base runners — all on walks — and never advanced a runner past second base. Stoffel faced just 19 batters and threw 94 pitches. The defense behind her was equally sharp, committing just one error while making several routine and timely plays.
After being no-hit and mercy-ruled in the opening game of the doubleheader, State stormed back with a vengeance in the nightcap, defeating Wesleyan 8–1 behind a complete-game from Autumn Hall and a 10-hit offensive outburst.
Hall delivered a seven-inning complete game while scattering five hits and allowing just one earned run. She struck out two, walked none, and threw 94 pitches in the efficient outing. Hall also contributed at the plate, going 3-for-3 with a double, three RBIs, and two runs scored—leading her team in both the circle and the batter’s box.
The game remained scoreless after the first inning, but State jumped ahead in the second. Singles by Olivia Bell and Emma Pauley, followed by a two-run double to deep center from Hall, gave the Yellow Jackets a 2–0 lead. After two more baserunners and a bases-loaded walk to Chloe Treadway, the score moved to 3–0, prompting a pitching change by Wesleyan.
Starter Morgan Greene lasted just 1.1 innings, allowing four hits and three runs. Josi Fix came on in relief.
State kept the pressure on, scoring in four consecutive innings from the second through the sixth. Treadway added a two-run single in the fourth, and Hall plated another run with an infield hit in the fifth. In the sixth, Sydney Shamblin doubled and later scored on a sacrifice bunt from Kerigan Moore, and Bell capped off the scoring with an RBI single to make it 8–1.
After scoring nine runs earlier in the day, Wesleyan was held to just one run in the second game. That came in the fourth inning, when Gracie Arnold singled home Lynzee Hague, who had reached on a base hit and advanced on a groundout. Arnold led the Bobcats at the plate, going 2-for-3 with a double and an RBI.
Despite a pinch-hit double by Courtney Fizer in the fifth and another leadoff double by Arnold in the seventh, Wesleyan couldn’t capitalize. Hall retired the final three batters to end the threat and seal the win.
