Grove City Softball Smacks Dublin Coffman 13-1

Grove City — Fresh off a spring break trip to South Carolina, the Grove City Lady Hounds returned to Ohio by hosting Dublin Coffman on Tuesday afternoon. The Lady Hounds posted a 3-2 record during their southern swing, a solid start that provided a sense of direction early in the 2025 season.

Dublin Coffman struck first against Lady Hounds starter Cami O’Neal, with Nicole Shafer delivering a one-out RBI single to give the Shamrocks a 1-0 lead. Grove City, however, responded quickly, capitalizing on a Shamrocks error in the bottom of the inning to even the score at 1-1.

From there, O’Neal found her rhythm in the circle, shutting down Dublin Coffman with a solid performance. Navigating her way out of tight spots, she went the distance, allowing just five hits, one earned run, three walks, and recording four strikeouts.

Grove City pitching coach Jason Strausbaugh had nothing but praise for O’Neal, who earned her third win of the season with Tuesday’s performance.

“Cami hits her spots well and understands she has a great defense behind her,” Strausbaugh said. “She isn’t going to record 13 strikeouts a game, but she is going to put the ball in play so the defense can make a play.”

With O’Neal holding Coffman at bay, the Lady Hounds’ offense came alive in the third inning.

Mallory Masterson, Addison Phillips, Tommi Ewing, and Addison Cherry all delivered RBI hits, pushing Grove City ahead 5-1. Haylie Chapman then provided the exclamation point, launching a two-run homer to cap the rally and extend the lead to 7-1 by the end of the third inning.

Grove City’s offense continued to surge, adding six more runs to finish it off. Ewing and Masterson each recorded another RBI hit, while Phillips sealed the victory with a three-run homer in the bottom of the fifth. The offensive onslaught secured a 13-1 mercy-rule win over Dublin Coffman.

Coach Strausbaugh made it clear there’s no weak spot in the Grove City lineup.

“We go through our whole offense and there’s a couple of hitters you could pitch around,” he said. “I don’t think there is anyone you can pitch around on this one. Everyone can hit the ball.”

Seven different Lady Hounds got hits on Tuesday, with Addison Phillips leading the way with five RBIs. Tommi Ewing, Mallory Masterson, and Haylie Chapman each drove in two runs, and Addison Cherry chipped in an RBI.

With a 4-2 record and some momentum, Grove City looks to build each day towards becoming a better program.

“The biggest thing for us is just getting better each day,” Strausbaugh says. “We preach to these kids that we don’t want to stay at the same level of game, we want to elevate it.”

Grove City (4-2) looks to keep its momentum going when it faces Johnstown-Monroe on Wednesday. Dublin Coffman (2-3) is set to host North Union the same day in Dublin.