Varsity baseball, softball teams both Metro Buckeye champs

• By YS News Staff
• Published: May 4, 2026

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BASEBALL

For only the second time in Yellow Springs High School history, and the first time since 2002, the Bulldogs varsity baseball team has won the Metro Buckeye Conference.

The team had only two games this week, keeping hyper-focused on the home-at-home series against local MBC rival Legacy Christian Academy. The squad made the short trip to the Athletes-In-Action complex on Tuesday, April 21, to face the Knights. The Bulldogs hit a literal and figurative bump in the road as they had to negotiate around a fallen tree that blocked the road on their way to the game. The game itself was a little more difficult to overcome as the Knights plated runs in each inning while the Bulldogs were only able to amass two runs. Jaxyn Fletcher had two hits and Bryce Fleming had one. The Bulldogs took the loss but remained hopeful for the rematch.

The varsity hosted the rematch with the Knights on Thursday. The conference championship came down to this game, so tensions and expectations were high. Sophomore Bryce Fleming took his 3–0 record to the mound, fueled by his traditional pregame and in-game bag of apples. Legacy threw their ace at the Bulldogs, so hitting came at a premium. Both teams went scoreless in the first three innings as the sizable home crowd wondered if either team would score in this pitcher’s duel.

The top of the fourth inning was pivotal for the Bulldogs. After a weak flyout to Collin Goebel in left field, an error allowed a Knights runner to reach base. The runner stole second and advanced to third on a throwing error. Goebel hustled from left field to back up the play, got to the ball as the runner rounded third and unleashed a perfect strike to Mason Cline, who applied the tag at home. This play ignited the Bulldogs and was quite possibly the most exciting and consequential play of the season to this point.

The Bulldogs put the first run on the board in the bottom of the fourth when Goebel singled and scampered to third on a throwing error. Mateo Basora promptly scorched a line-drive single to left, scoring Goebel. Fleming kept the Knights off the board in the fifth, then started a rally with a single. Graham Turnmire pinch ran, stole second, and Kian Rainey worked a walk to set things up for senior slugger Caleb Derrickson, whose grounder allowed Turnmire to score.

Fleming began the seventh with yet another strikeout. After an error and a single scored one run, the Knights had the tying run at second. Coach Mitch Clark went to the mound. Fleming asked, “Am I done?” Clark replied, “I’m not taking you out of this game.” The move worked as Fleming struck out the next batter and induced a popup to Rainey in right field to end the game and take home the championship.

When the box score was finally tallied, the Bulldogs had won 2–1 on the strength of Fleming’s complete-game performance that included 12 strikeouts. He had a 73% strike rate and started off 22 of 28 hitters with a strike. Fleming’s ERA now stands at 0.64 on the year in support of his now 4–0 record.

The JV squad met up with the Dixie Greyhounds on Monday at Gaunt Park in a high-scoring affair. Evan Collier and Henry Babb each pitched three innings. The Bulldogs bats were on fire, scoring at least one run in every inning to come away with a 22–12 run-rule victory. Babb had three hits and three RBI, while Collin Goebel, David Torres and Collier had two hits each. The Bulldogs stole an unbelievable 22 bases over six innings and made only one error. The team improved to 5–2.

The middle school squad visited the Clark Shawnee Braves in a rematch of their April 13 game. The Bulldogs held a 2–1 lead going into the bottom of the second inning, but then things got away from them and they took the loss. Elliot Shires provided the offense, but the Bulldogs couldn’t muster any additional runs after posting one in each of the first two innings.

—Coach Mitch Clark

SOFTBALL

The varsity Bulldogs powered through one of their busiest and toughest weeks of the season, showing off their offense, strong play in the field and a clear focus on building for the future. With two Metro Buckeye Conference games packed into the schedule, they were tested in different ways and delivered strong performances across the board.

On April 21, Yellow Springs kicked things off with a 15–10 win over Legacy Christian Academy, led by freshman Malini Miller, who drove in four runs on two hits. She doubled in the first inning, added a sacrifice fly in the fourth and singled again in the seventh. The Bulldogs offense stayed hot all game, racking up 16 hits. Anderson had three hits, while Allee Bayard, Kennedy Stroble, Kylee Reichelderfer-Wolff, Piper Millhoan and Audrey Millhoan all added to the effort. Nora Bongorno chipped in with an RBI single, and the team showed patience at the plate with five walks while also swiping 12 bases.

In the circle, Miller delivered a gritty complete-game performance. She threw 120 pitches, striking out nine while allowing one walk and 13 hits. She consistently attacked hitters early, starting 20 of 35 at-bats with a strike, and generated 21 swinging strikes. The defense backed her up, committing just two errors and finishing with a .933 fielding percentage.

They were right back at it on April 22 with a road game at East Clinton. Looking ahead to long-term development, Yellow Springs used the game as a “softball scramble,” giving players chances to try new positions. Even in a 21–10 loss, there were plenty of offensive highlights. In the fifth inning alone, Bayard drew a bases-loaded walk, Reichelderfer-Wolff knocked in two with a single, Anderson added an RBI single, and Audrey Millhoan closed out the inning with a two-run hit. Millhoan finished with two hits, while Bayard reached base four times through walks as the team drew 13 free passes overall.

Back home on April 23, the Bulldogs pulled off a thrilling 6–5 walk-off win over Legacy Christian Academy. Reichelderfer-Wolff came through with a perfectly placed bunt in the bottom of the seventh to bring in the winning run. Yellow Springs totaled 12 hits, with Reichelderfer-Wolff leading the way with three. Miller added two hits and earned the win in the circle, striking out eight and allowing three earned runs over seven innings.

The defense rose to the occasion, playing clean, error-free softball. Elise Bongorno tracked down a pop fly in right field, overcoming what had been one of the team’s biggest challenges this season. Nora Bongorno and Kennedy Stroble anchored first and second base, combining for steady infield play. Stroble finished with 12 putouts, while Bongorno assisted on four of them. Bayard also contributed defensively with three putouts at shortstop.

Anderson drove in two runs, Bayard sparked the offense with a triple, and Stroble also made an impact on the base paths, including two steals. By the end of the week, the Bulldogs had made history: Their conference performance secured the Metro Buckeye Conference championship, only the third in program history, joining the titles from 2017 and 2022.

—Coach Danielle Steck

TRACK

Bulldogs shine at county invitational

The YSHS boys and girls teams competed recently at the 10th annual Greene County Invitational. The girls team finished in sixth place while the boys came in eighth place. Senior sprinter Llnyah Grant was once again at the forefront in leading the Bulldogs. Llnyah earned two first-place finishes in the 100 meters (12.52 season best) and the 200 meters (26.71). Llnyah also anchored the second-place 400-meter relay team of Isabella Espinosa, Natalie Gilley and Brooklyn Hapgood. Llnyah also had a personal best in the long jump (15-11) with a third-place effort. Isabella Espinosa (fourth), 100 hurdles, and Violet Matteson (fourth), 400 meters, performed well.

Seventh-place scoring efforts were achieved by Addison Shafeek in the discus along with the 800-meter relay team of Inez Creepingbear, Brooklyn Hapgood, Petra Nieberding and Evie Thomas. Rounding out the scoring for the Bulldogs were Rebecca DeWine in the 3,200 meters and the 1,600-meter relay squad of Abebu Barnett, Inez Creepingbear, Brooklyn Hapgood and Violet Matteson. Solid efforts were turned in by Paradise Everhart and Sierra Sundell-Turner.

On the boys side, distance ace Kyle Johnston, running against solid competition, ran to a third-place effort in the 1,600 meters (4:42) and followed up that race with a fourth-place finish in the 3,200 meters (10:22). Sophomore Aaron White, competing in his first meet of the year, leaped to a fourth-place finish (5-10) in the high jump. Senior Phoenix York sprinted to a fourth-place finish in the 100 meters (11:84) while also helping the sixth-place 400-meter relay team of Kiernan Anderson, Carter Brookey and Aaron White. Junior Wills Oberg ran a season-best time in the 800 meters (2:13) while finishing seventh.

The 800-meter relay squad of Carter Brookey, Amitai DeLamatre, Hugo Grigorian and Trevor Roberts, along with the 3,200-meter relay quartet of Arthur DeVore, Noah Diamond, Wills Oberg and Trevor Roberts, scored seventh-place points. Rounding out the scoring for the Bulldogs with eighth-place performances were Matteo Chaiten (400 meters) and the 1,600-meter relay tandem of Carter Brookey, Matteo Chaiten, Hugo Grigorian and Wills Oberg. Saul Alvarez and Brendyn Slone put forth great efforts in their respective events.

Coaches Isabelle Dierauer, John Gudgel and Dave Johnston were well pleased with the times and distances earned by the Bulldogs in this ultra-competitive meet. The Bulldogs will split their squads this week with some athletes competing at the Wayne Invitational while the majority of the squad will run at the Greenon Relays on Saturday.

—Coach John Gudgel

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