Columbus East High School

OLYMPIAN FIELD — Columbus East waited until the final swing Wednesday night at Olympian Field—and made it count. Tied 4-4 in the bottom of the ninth, the Olympians put together one last push, and Ariel Darnell delivered the walk-off hit, driving in the winning run to secure a 5-4 extra-inning victory over Lawrence Central. With the tension building late, East worked its way into scoring position before Darnell stepped up and came through in the clutch, sending the Olympians off the field with a hard-earned win. The dramatic finish capped a resilient effort for Columbus East, which battled back from a 4-2 deficit and kept the Bears off the scoreboard over the final four innings. Baleigh Fish led the offense, going 2-for-4 with a home run and an RBI. Lola Watkins added a triple and drove in a run, while Jacque Boroughs contributed a double and an RBI. Natasha Armstrong had a strong night at the plate, finishing 3-for-5 with two doubles, helping spark multiple scoring opportunities. Darnell’s game-winner highlighted her contribution, while Jade Hampton also added an RBI as East totaled 10 hits. In the circle, Jayley Smiley went the distance, tossing all nine innings. She allowed four runs on nine hits and worked around six walks, shutting down Lawrence Central in the final four frames to give East the opportunity to win it late. Lawrence Central used a three-run fourth inning and added another in the fifth to take the lead, but East answered with runs in the third and fourth before tying the game with a two-run fifth. From there, it was a grind—until Darnell ended it. Columbus East is right back on the field tonight, April 23rd, when the host the Seymour Owls, a HHC opponent. First pitch: 5:30 p.m. Digital tickets only, no cash at the gate: https://public.eventlink.com/tickets?t=180100 Concession stand cash only