Avon explodes in seventh inning to beat Brecksville, advance to district finals in softball

BARBERTON — Avon's table setters delivered when it counted Monday night. The Eagles' first three hitters started 0-for-8 with a walk, but they got the offense rolling in the seventh, each reaching base to break open the floodgates and turn a tie score into a 14-2 rout over Brecksville in the Division I Barberton district semifinals. "I was just thinking that I had to get on base for my team," Avon leadoff hitter Amanda Demmerle said. "I wasn't ready for my season to be over. It was 2-2 in the top of the seventh, nobody knew what was going to happen. We weren't ready to be done and I knew if I got on base they would move me around and we'd score. "It feels great (to reach the final). Going from where we were my freshman year, where we didn't even make it out of sectionals to now, it's a big step in this program and I'm so excited." Sixth-seeded Avon (19-8) will try to capture its first district championship since 1979 against No. 5 St. Joseph's Academy — a 3-0 winner over Strongsville — at 5 p.m. Wednesday. Brecksville finished its season at 18-6. "We knew we had to have the timely hitting to bring runs in," said Avon pitcher Kayla Dykin, who drove in four runs on two doubles in the seventh, including the one that broke the tie. "We said we're not going to extra innings with them again, because we did it earlier in the year, so we came out with the mindset to just hit the ball where it's pitched and that's what we did." Dykin delivered a strong outing for Avon, striking out nine with five hits and three walks in the complete game. The only blemish for Dykin, and the Eagles' defense, came in the fourth when an error on a double-play ball put runners in scoring position with no outs. A walk loaded the bases and Zoe Parks worked a full count to deliver a single that gave Brecksville a 2-1 lead. "They foul off a lot of pitches," Dykin said. "One through nine, none of them are easy outs. They're a very good hitting team. We just have to trust in our defense, trust in our pitches and work as a team. This was our best game as a team this whole year." Liz Berki was at the center of both Avon runs prior to the seventh. The junior got the fourth started with a double that led to the Eagles' first run. In the fifth, she reached on an error at third that scored Demmerle. Demmerle entered the seventh 0-for-3 with two strikeouts and a fielder's choice, but delivered a well-hit grounder past third. Jesse Dean reached on an error and Dykin plated them both with well-hit ball over short for a two-run double. Berki added on with her second double of the evening, scoring Dykin. The Eagles' first six hitters reached safely and scored, with 11 of their first 12 hitters crossing home plate. "We have good hitters one through nine and they all proved it today," Avon coach Ken Matuszak said. "We lost to Brecksville in the previous tournament by throwing the ball around, and we did make an extra throw in the fourth to give them one run, but it feels great (to advance). They're a great team and that's a great win for us." Contact Chris Sweeney at 329-7135 or ctsports@chroniclet.com. Follow him @CSweeneyCT on Twitter.