A young and talented Lady Indians softball team proved they are ready to take the field. They kicked off their 2021 season with an exciting pair of victories and thrilled their fans with a glimpse of what's to come.

Sophomore pitcher Aaliyah Cannon picked up the win in the season opener on March 26th, pitching three innings against host ELCO in a 19-8 Indians' victory.

Freshman Bella Mackinson churned momentum at the plate, picking up four hits including two doubles, a triple, and four RBIs.

Fellow freshmen, Natalie Colwell and Emma Garber also made the most of their debut game and each supplied a trio of RBIs.

Madeline Gohn and Colwell each added a triple to the days impressive resume, and Colwell also pitched in relief, facing 12 Raider batters and striking out two.

Collectively, the team amassed 20 hits and ran away with the contest with a nine-run fifth inning.

"We are very young, but that being said, our freshmen and sophomores have stepped up and are improving every day," credited head coach Wayne Emenheiser. "We are also led by our senior co-captains Aysha Gibbs and Madeline Gohn who are four-year varsity players."

Cannon earned a second win in the circle during the Indians 13-8 victory over Garden Spot on March 29th, striking out four. Colwell pitched two and a third innings in relief, striking out two and closing out the victory.

Mackinson powered a three-run homer to center field to put the Indians on the scoreboard in the first inning and accumulated four RBIs. Gohn had doubles in both the third and fourth inning pushing another three runners across the plate.

Though the Spartans rallied for a seven-run blitz in the fifth, the Indians had already established their 13-run advantage. Gibbs, Gohn, and Mackinson each provided a pair of hits to the team's collection of 10.

"Our coaching staff is excited about the potential this group shows and their hard work in practice," praised Emenheiser. "We will take the wins and hope we continue to lower our mistakes."

TENNIS

Plenty of promise was on display in the early weeks of the Donegal boys' tennis season, including a 3-game win streak to open their schedule.

"We got off to a great start," celebrated head coach Trent Hoffmaster.

Newcomers to the tennis squad, Jacob Erb and Akilan Murugesan, both held unscathed records in singles play and as doubles partners in those first three contests. The duo succumbed to their first defeat in doubles against Lancaster Catholic on the 29th when the Indians were dealt their first team loss by an undefeated Crusaders club 6-1.

"They have acted like veteran varsity players on the tennis court," said Hoffmaster of Erb and Murugesan.

Collectively, the club put together a 5-2 win over Elizabethtown to kickstart their schedule on March 15. Erb and Murugesan paired for a doubles victory as well as each earning a singles win alongside teammate Evan Stehman.

Stehman has remained a constant strength for the Tribe, securing a Donegal point in every match to start his season off with an undefeated 4-0 singles record.

Providing the Indians' fifth point against the Bears was Landon Keller and Jordan Miller in their 8-5 doubles success.

On March 25th, the Indians swept Lancaster Mennonite at home 7-0, with Luke Yunginger and Stehman picking up their first win as a pair 9-8 in addition to their individual victories in singles.

"Luke Yunginger has been extremely impressive taking over the number one position," noted Hoffmaster.

The Indians made quick work of the Lampeter-Strasburg Pioneers in a 6-1 win on the 26th. The Tribe swept the singles competitions in straight sets as well as two of the three doubles showdowns.

TRACK

The Lady Indians track team grabbed an 88-62 win while hosting Northern Lebanon in their inaugural meet of 2021 on Monday, March 29th.

Sophomore sprinter Anna Brubaker raked in a slew of points with first place finishes in the 100 (13.2) and 200 meter (28.3) races as well as a second place high jump of 4-6.

Donegal athletes dominated the triple jump event with a sweep led by sophomore McKyla Bantum's 31-11 effort.

"McKyla finished first in the triple jump and nearly got on the school record list in her first time competing in that event," pointed out head coach Bryce Sadler.

Completing the triple jump sweep was Lillian Stehman's second place (30-1) and Claudia Taylor (28-10) in third.

Myra Naqvi blazed her way to first place finishes in both the 800 meters (2:31) and the 1600 meters (5:33.4), Sarah Hinkle won the 300 hurdles with a time of 54.8, and Rachel Fernald claimed the 3200 in 12:57.3

Representing with victories in the throwing events was Katherine Rupp's 64-3.5 javelin throw and Emily Kreider's 65-8 discus win.

For the boys, the meet held a 98-48 loss to the Vikings, but several notable highlights rose to the surface.

Zack Nissley's performance held three personal records and landed him in the top three of each of the throwing events with a first-place javelin throw of 167-8, a second in discus (130-3), and a third in shot put (45-0).

Distance runner Brock Overlander also produced two personal bests in his pair of victories in the 1600 (4:55) and 3200 (10:55.5).

BASEBALL

Baseball got off to a tough start with losses to Garden Spot (3-0) and ELCO (7-1) to open the season but has plenty of time to improve as the season gets underway.

While visiting Garden Spot on the 29th, Jonathan Holmes started on the mound, striking out three and walking three in just over three innings of work. Caden Evans also struck out three while pitching in relief.

Though the Indians were unable to cross the plate, their bats showed promise in the form of six hits, led by two from Andrew Small.

Jaden Fabian was saddled with the 7-1 opening loss to ELCO on March 26th, throwing for four innings, striking out five, and only walking one.

Batting was a highlight for the Indians who outhit the Raiders seven to five. Landen Baughman contributed two of the Indians hits, and Joel Grillo suppled the RBI that scored Small in the bottom of the third.