HARTFORD. W.Va. -- Elissa Hoffman was so engrossed in her team winning she didn't realize she'd thrown a no-hitter.
"I did?" she asked after Wahama's 8-0 victory over Sherman on Monday in the Class A Region 4 softball finals. "Oh, wow!"
Hoffman struck out seven and walked two. A pair of batters reached on errors, but none crossed the plate as the White Falcons (26-5) took the first game in the best-of-three series.
"You're not going to beat anybody if you don't hit the ball," Tide coach Terri-Dawn Williams said. "We didn't make solid contact all night long and they did. That's the difference in the ball game."
Wahama smacked 15 hits, with leadoff hitter Audrey Reynolds going 3 for 4. Fiona VanMatre was 2 for 3 with two runs batted in. Peyton Staats went 2 for 3 with two RBIs. Hoffman and Phoebe Richardson went 2 for 3.
Hoffman knocked in one run and would've had a second had the mercy rule not come into play after her double in the game's last at-bat scored Kate Reynolds ahead of Staats.
VanMatre singled home Marlee Carr with two outs in the second inning to put the White Falcons ahead to stay. Richardson doubled in Hoffman with two away in the third to make it 2-0. After Audrey Reynolds tripled in the fourth, VanMatre smacked a sacrifice fly to center to score her.Â
Richardson drove in Kate Reynolds, and Zoie Mayes plated Staats in the fifth for a 5-0 advantage. In the sixth, Staats doubled to score VanMatre and Kalyn Christian, setting up Hoffman's game-ending hit.
"I think we played a C-plus game," White Falcons coach Wes Riffle said. "It's a win, so we'll take it. Audrey's been sick. Her allergies have been killing her. We'll try to put it away (Tuesday)."
Riffle said Hoffman performed well, especially late when her changeup worked well. The closest she came to giving up a hit was when Kierra Stewart smashed a ball to third, but it eluded the fielder who was in position to make the play.
The teams are scheduled to meet again at 6 p.m. Tuesday at Sherman (17-13).
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