H.S. Softball: Teddi Hardoby hits for cycle as Wellington beats Elyria Catholic in opener

SANDUSKY — Wellington senior Teddi Hardoby said she struggled to get comfortable switching from catcher to left field during the offseason. There were no comfort issues at the plate Wednesday night. Hardoby went 5-for-5, drove in five runs and hit for the cycle as the Dukes rolled to an 11-6 victory over Elyria Catholic in both teams' season opener at Sports Force Parks. "I guess now being in the outfield, you don't get as much action," Hardoby said. "So I had to take my action at the plate and get it there." Hardoby took care of the first three components of the cycle in the first three innings. She hit a bloop single over third base in the first, tripled to left-center in the second and cracked a double to right-center in the third. She added a line single to center in the fifth, then drove in Wellington's final two runs with an inside-the-park home run in the seventh. "I didn't really realize it and then someone was like, 'Hey, if you hit (a home run) here you're hitting for the cycle,'" Hardoby said. "But then I didn't really think about it (after sending a shot to the left-center fence) and then Coach was like, 'Run, don't stop.' OK." Hardoby helped fuel a nine-run outburst over the second and third innings. "I didn't even realize she was 5-for-5 … what a way to come out for her senior year," Dukes coach Duane Sunagel said. "She leads this team and the younger girls go as she does. She kind of got us started with that seeing-eye single and then we just started hitting the ball. We hit the ball where they weren't, we hit it hard and everything came out good." The Panthers attempted to chip away at the early deficit, scoring three runs in the bottom of the third and adding runs in the fifth and seventh to go with a pair of runners stranded on third. The top of the lineup drove the offense as leadoff hitter Grace Belza scored three runs and had three stolen bases, No. 2 hitter Annika Bredel went 2-for-4 with a double, two runs scored and two stolen bases and No. 3 hitter Savannah Dixon — a sophomore transfer from Brookside — went 2-for-3 with a run scored, two RBIs and three stolen bases. The rest of EC's lineup struggled to keep pace. "It's all about consistency," said Panthers co-coach Terrel Dixon, Savannah's father. "They're working on new mechanics, so the mechanics are introducing a lot of things again, but it's just getting the time in to make them consistent, getting the reps in." EC showed signs of solid play at the plate and in the field, but it just couldn't match Wellington's big innings and clutch outs. "We have a history of slow starts," said Jim Piazza, the Panthers' other co-coach. "That's one of the things we talked about, that we're going to get better. These kids know that those mistakes will get straightened out. We're teaching them new things and trying to build something special." Nothing matched the special start Hardoby put together to kick off her final high school season. The work with the bat was nothing unusual but standing in grass instead of squatting behind the plate took some getting used to. "It's definitely a little weird being in a different position, but it's fun," Hardoby said. "During my first scrimmage I was like, 'I don't know if I can do this.' But then as we progressed, it just felt like I knew what to do … which is good because I was definitely not an outfielder before the season started. They kind of turned me into one." Contact Shaun Bennett at 329-7137 or sbennett@chroniclet.com. Like him on Facebook and follow him @ShaunBennettct on Twitter. Wellington 11, Elyria Catholic 6 Wellington&emsp;&emsp;ab&emsp;&emsp;r&emsp;&emsp;h&emsp;&emsp;bi&emsp;&emsp;Elyria Catholic&emsp;&emsp;ab&emsp;&emsp;r&emsp;&emsp;h&emsp;&emsp;bi Hardoby&emsp;&emsp;5 &emsp;&emsp;3 &emsp;&emsp;5 &emsp;&emsp;5 &emsp;&emsp;Belza 2 &emsp;&emsp;3 &emsp;&emsp;1 &emsp;&emsp;0 Pasadyn &emsp;&emsp;5 &emsp;&emsp;1 &emsp;&emsp;2 &emsp;&emsp;2 &emsp;&emsp;Bredel 4 &emsp;&emsp;2 &emsp;&emsp;2 &emsp;&emsp;0 Pickering&emsp;&emsp;5 &emsp;&emsp;0 &emsp;&emsp;0 &emsp;&emsp;1 &emsp;&emsp;Dixon 3 &emsp;&emsp;1 &emsp;&emsp;2 &emsp;&emsp;2 M. Oswald 4 &emsp;&emsp;0 &emsp;&emsp;1 &emsp;&emsp;0 &emsp;&emsp;Brooks 2 &emsp;&emsp;0 &emsp;&emsp;0 &emsp;&emsp;1 L. Oswald 2 &emsp;&emsp;0 &emsp;&emsp;0 &emsp;&emsp;0 &emsp;&emsp;Niederst &emsp;&emsp;3 &emsp;&emsp;0 &emsp;&emsp;1 &emsp;&emsp;0 M. Paramore 3 &emsp;&emsp;2 &emsp;&emsp;1 &emsp;&emsp;0 &emsp;&emsp;Morgan &emsp;&emsp;3 &emsp;&emsp;0 &emsp;&emsp;1 &emsp;&emsp;0 T. Paramore 4 &emsp;&emsp;1 &emsp;&emsp;1 &emsp;&emsp;0 &emsp;&emsp;Sawyer &emsp;&emsp;0 &emsp;&emsp;0 &emsp;&emsp;0 &emsp;&emsp;0 Lewis 3 &emsp;&emsp;2 &emsp;&emsp;2 &emsp;&emsp;1 &emsp;&emsp;Manley &emsp;&emsp;2 &emsp;&emsp;0 &emsp;&emsp;0 &emsp;&emsp;0 Lundy 0 &emsp;&emsp;1 &emsp;&emsp;0 &emsp;&emsp;0 &emsp;&emsp;Perkins &emsp;&emsp;0 &emsp;&emsp;0 &emsp;&emsp;0 &emsp;&emsp;0 Sickels 2 &emsp;&emsp;1 &emsp;&emsp;1 &emsp;&emsp;1 &emsp;&emsp;Saddler &emsp;&emsp;2 &emsp;&emsp;0 &emsp;&emsp;0 &emsp;&emsp;0 &emsp;&emsp;Thompson 3 &emsp;&emsp;0 &emsp;&emsp;0 &emsp;&emsp;0 Totals&emsp;&emsp;33&emsp;&emsp;11&emsp;&emsp;13&emsp;&emsp;10&emsp;&emsp;Totals&emsp;&emsp;24&emsp;&emsp;6&emsp;&emsp;7&emsp;&emsp;3 Wellington&emsp;&emsp;054&emsp;&emsp;000&emsp;&emsp;2&emsp;&emsp;—&emsp;&emsp;11&emsp;&emsp;13&emsp;&emsp;2 Elyria Catholic&emsp;&emsp;103&emsp;&emsp;010&emsp;&emsp;1&emsp;&emsp;—&emsp;&emsp;6&emsp;&emsp;7&emsp;&emsp;4 2B — Lewis, Hardoby, Bredel. 3B — Hardoby, Pasadyn. HR — Hardoby. SAC — Sickels 2, Manley, Saddler, L. Oswald. SF — Brooks. SB — Belza 3, Dixon 3, Bredel 2, Pasadyn, Pickering, M. Paramore. CS — Niederst. DP — Elyria Catholic. LOB — Wellington 8, Elyria Catholic 4. &emsp;&emsp;IP&emsp;&emsp;H&emsp;&emsp;R&emsp;&emsp;ER&emsp;&emsp;BB&emsp;&emsp;SO Wellington Pickering (W, 1-0)&emsp;&emsp;4&emsp;&emsp;3&emsp;&emsp;4&emsp;&emsp;4&emsp;&emsp;3&emsp;&emsp;7 M. Oswald&emsp;&emsp;3&emsp;&emsp;4&emsp;&emsp;2&emsp;&emsp;2&emsp;&emsp;1&emsp;&emsp;3 Elyria Catholic Morgan (L, 0-1)&emsp;&emsp;3&emsp;&emsp;9&emsp;&emsp;9&emsp;&emsp;5&emsp;&emsp;1&emsp;&emsp;3 Manley&emsp;&emsp;4&emsp;&emsp;4&emsp;&emsp;2&emsp;&emsp;2&emsp;&emsp;2&emsp;&emsp;0 WP — Morgan 2, Pickering 2, Manley. PB — L. Oswald 2, Belza. HBP — M. Paramore (by Manley).