Columbus East High School

COLUMBUS EAST - What looked like it might become a heartbreaking loss quickly turned into one of the most exciting wins of the season Saturday morning at Olympian Field. The Columbus East Olympians stormed back with four runs in the bottom of the seventh inning, capped by a clutch two-out walk-off double from Taylor Wessel, to defeat the Indianapolis Living Water Marlins 12-11 in a wild back-and-forth softball battle. The Olympians scored early and often, jumping out to a early lead behind the hot bats of Lola Watkins and Thaise Jessup. Watkins opened the bottom of the first with a triple to center field and later scored, while Jessup launched a two-run home run to left field to give East an early 2-1 advantage. East exploded again in the second inning, plating five more runs to build a commanding 7-1 lead. Watkins delivered another extra-base hit with a triple, Jessup added an RBI single, Natasha Armstrong ripped an RBI single, Ariel Darnell drove in two runs with a single to right, and Jade Hampton added an RBI base hit of her own. The Marlins slowly battled back over the middle innings, taking advantage of a few Olympian miscues to erase the deficit and eventually move in front 11-8 entering the bottom of the seventh. Despite the momentum swinging against them, the Olympians never panicked. Ladaishia Logan started the rally with a single before Watkins followed with a hard-hit single to right. Jessup then delivered one of several huge hits on the day, lacing an RBI double to left field to cut the deficit to 11-9. After Boroughs was hit by a pitch to load the bases, N. Armstrong lifted a sacrifice fly to center that brought East within one at 11-10. With two outs and the pressure at its highest point, Wessel stepped to the plate and delivered the knockout punch, driving a fly ball into center field for a walk-off two-run double that scored both the tying and winning runs, sending the Olympian dugout spilling onto the field in a "dog pile"celebration. The Olympians pounded out 14 hits in the victory and received massive offensive performances throughout the lineup. Unfortunately, six errors by the Olympians in the field, almost derailed the Olympians great day at the plate. Watkins had a monster day at the plate, finishing 3-for-5 with two triples and three runs scored. Jessup was equally dangerous, going 3-for-5 with a home run, double, three RBIs, and three runs scored. Wessel finished with three RBIs, including the game-winning hit, while Armstrong collected two hits and two RBIs. Darnell also added two hits and two RBIs for the Olympians. Inside the circle, starting pitcher Baleigh Fish was sharp early and helped East build momentum before an injury midway through the second inning forced the Olympians to turn to Jacque Boroughs in relief. Boroughs battled through the remainder of the game and came up with several key outs down the stretch to help secure the victory. The win continues a busy stretch for the Olympians, who now prepare for another packed week featuring four games in six days. Columbus East returns to action Tuesday, May 12, traveling to New Albany for a Hoosier Hills Conference matchup. First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m.