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Class AAA: Hurricane blanks Wheeling Park

VIENNA, W.Va. — Courtney Rogers fired a five-hit shutout and drove in two runs as Hurricane beat Wheeling Park for the Class AAA state championship on Thursday.

Hurricane (33-6), which also downed Wheeling Park 2-1 on Wednesday, went unbeaten in the four-team bracket and captured the program’s first state title.

Wheeling Park ended its season at 21-7. Watch video highlights and postgame reaction here.

Rogers struck out only four but was in control throughout.

“I just knew I had to pitch good and I had to hit my spots,” she said. “I knew I couldn’t let up at all.”

Wheeling Park pitcher Carly Greer matched Rogers for a while, but the Redskins pulled ahead 2-0 in the third inning. Cassi Sargent’s lashed an RBI triple into the right-field corner and Rogers followed with a single.

In the bottom of the fifth, Hurricane added two more runs as Sargent and Rogers ripped back-to-back RBI doubles.

“It’s great to know that the school has never done this in 33 years,” Sargent said. “We’re the first ones to ever come this far, much less to win it all.”

Hurricane coach Josh Caldwell said this group of players left a proud legacy. “These girls have played together for a long time and they deserve this. Hopefully this energizes future generations to get that same goal.”

Hurricane added a sixth-inning run to make it 5-0 before Wheeling Park tried to rally in its last at-bat. The Patriots put their first two runners aboard in the seventh, but Colleen Tracy lined into a hard-luck double-play.

“I couldn’t be any prouder for my team,” said Wheeling Park catcher Ashleigh Sidon moments after the loss. “Because while we’re here playing the game, 50 other teams are sitting home watching us. We didn’t want to be runner-up, but we accomplished so much.”

Wheeling Park advanced to the title game by edging Jefferson 5-3 in an elimination game Thursday morning.

Kristen Slater struck the go-ahead blow in a two-run seventh with an RBI single. That followed Kelsi Johnson hitting a game-tying solo homer in the sixth.





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