Boys LacrosseThe state competition was a great final stop for the Eagles this season, as Bellbrook took a tough loss against eventual state champion St. Francis DeSales in the Division II state semifinals.
But the season as a whole was nothing short of successful, as the Eagles finished 13-4.
Logan Mozingo was the team’s leader in goals with 45. Gavin McConnell was second with 42. McConnell set the single game record with 10 goals in a game earlier this season. Carter Colfack was next on the team with 34.
“The story of the season was really what we did in the last few weeks, Bellbrook coach Vince Molseed said. “The kids really came together. It was our last loss at Mariemont. We didn’t play well. They made us look bad. The kids were frustrated. The coaches were frustrated. No one was taking personal accountability for how we were playing. We had a lot of conversations about picking each other up.
“If someone makes a mistake, we don’t yell at them. We have to just dig in and do a bit more. Everyone gives a bit more. One of the things I told them is that if we have 25 guys working together, we can’t lose. That gave us a sense of togetherness and we dialed it in. We worked together and that’s what’s gotten us through some games they’ve been tough.”
BaseballThe Eagles (19 10, 4 4 in the SWBL) had a strong season, ending in the district finals with a 5 0 loss to Indian Hill. Tyler Raker led the team offensively with a .372 batting average, a .456 on base percentage, three triples, three doubles, two homers and 23 RBI. Luke Benetis led the team on the hill with a 7-2 record and 57 innings pitched. He struck out 62 batters and had a 1.59 earned run average.
Paul Smith (Otterbein University), Ben Bayer (Ohio Wesleyan University), and Dakota Yeagley (Clark State CC) will be playing baseball at the next level. Luke Benetis is going to University of the Cumberlands to play football, but may also try to play baseball.
Benetis was first team SWBL and all area and Raker was second team SWBL and all area. Johnny Deszcz was first team SWBL and honorable mention all-area and Yeagley was second team SWBL. Will Dreisbach was honorable mention SWBL.
“We were a young team that had success due to the strong leadership of our senior class (Benetis, Deszcz, Smith, Yeagley and Bayer),” coach Jon Venters said. “We had multiple freshmen and sophomores play significant innings on varsity that will set us up for future success. We won our first sectional title since 2015. We played an extremely di cult schedule against bigger schools with eight of our 10 losses coming to DI opponents.”
Girls LacrosseWith a 15-3 overall record, including a win in the tournament, the Eagles had a spectacular season that included a bevy of career and personal milestones.
Ava Praeter and Bella Vaughn each scored their 100th goal this season while Kaitlyn Kwik reached the 100-point plateau.
Praeter and Lily Westwood were named all Region first team and Ashley Filburn was honorable mention. Coach Sarah Woll was the co-Coach of the Year.
“Overall this season was a true team effort,” Woll said. “My assistant Tyler Stewart is an invaluable piece of our team.”
SoftballThe softball team finished a tough season with a few bright spots, being led by some younger talent and setting the team up for the future.
Freshman Kelsey Kenney led the team in hitting with a .427 batting average, collecting 23 hits and scoring 18 runs. Heidi Pummell had a .322 batting average with seven doubles, a triple and a homer, while driving in 18. Mallory Horvath had 15 hits and scored 14 runs. She also drove in nine with a .319 batting average.
Junior Chasidy Stewart was one of the leaders at the plate and on the slab, throwing 119 innings for a 4.34 ERA. She struck out 65 batters. At the plate she hit .339 with 12 RBI, five doubles and a homer.
TennisThe boys tennis team was led by first singles player Jonah Grismer. Grismer was the second seed in the sectional and qualified for the district tournament. He also was named the SWBL Player of the Year.
Coach Mili Layrisse said that all of her singles players were phenomenal throughout the year, winning all their league matches. Alexander Howell and Luke Williams were the other singles players.
The team finished second in the Southwestern Buckeye League.
“It was a great season,” Layrisse said. “Everyone did their best all season long. We played 14 matches because of the rain. We are looking forward to next year. We have a lot of youth coming back.”
Track and FieldThe boys track team came home as SWBL champions by four points at the end of the season with the 3,200 relay and the 1,600 relay teams taking the titles. Connor Spriggs won the pole vault, Ben Roach won the shot put, Lincoln Warren won the discus, Zac Hanson won the 110 hurdles and Josiah Hamilton won the 300 hurdles.
Roach and Spriggs both qualified for the regional competition and Spriggs finished sixth.
During the season, the boys 1,600 relay team and the shuttle hurdles team each set school records.
The girls team finished second in the SWBL this season by a single point as the 3,200 relay and the 400 relay teams won titles as did Tori Dreischarf in the discus. Lorelai Wolverton qualified for the regional in the high jump and Allison High made it to regional in the 3,200.
Grace Atchison broke the school record in the hammer throw.
“We had a fun season,” coach Chad Beck said. “Our kids were incredibly close knit. It was great to watch our team culture really improve the last two seasons. More kids stayed for the meet, supported each other, rode the bus home, and belted out the Fight Song when arriving back to the school.”