Hagerty softball shuts down Oakleaf in Class 6A regional quarterfinal

Sophomore Ella Verne tosses 1-hitter, strikes out 11 for Huskies

OVIEDO, FLORIDA – The Hagerty Huskies lived up to their nickname on the softball field on Thursday night, showing that long road trips do nothing to slow them down.

Getting a superb one-hitter and 11 strikeouts from sophomore Ella Verne and just enough offense, Hagerty gutted out a 110-mile journey to shut out host Orange Park-Oakleaf, 2-0, in a Class 6A, Region 1 quarterfinal. The win propels the second-seeded Huskies (18-7) into a regional semifinal matchup against sixth-seeded Navarre on Tuesday, May 16.

Sophomore Ella Verne fired a one-hit masterpiece, striking out 11 batters, in Hagerty's 2-0 Class 6A, Region 1 quarterfinal playoff victory over Oakleaf / Photo by Jeff Gardenour

Navarre (15-12) defeated Lake Howell, 9-1, in another regional quarterfinal game.

“Quite a game,” said Hagerty coach David Stone. “Ella pitched a gem and the defense backed her up. Her screwball was working, but the key was that she worked ahead in the counts and hit her spots; that’s almost always a recipe for success.”

Verne came up huge for Hagerty in its latest playoff win. She took a no-hitter into the sixth inning before giving up a two-out double. But she then got the next batter to ground out to end the threat and the inning.

The Huskies gave Verne all the support she needed in the third inning when Rollins commit Rachel Matthiesen ripped an RBI-single and Isabella Zmuda scored on an error.

“I was very happy that we pulled out the win to extend our season,” Verne said. “I know the team was, too. I felt really good about my performance.

“My best pitches were my screw and curveball,” Verne said. “I used my screw as my setup pitch and then my curveball as my strikeout pitch.”

Verne’s spectacular performance gave Hagerty its ninth shutout of the season, and sixth win in its last seven games.

“Ella absolutely crushed it,” Matthiesen said. “She did her job and continued what she has done all season. She has been absolutely dominant as a sophomore and she is really something to watch.”

The Hagerty softball team has some phone posing for a photo following its 2-0 playoff win over Oakleaf / Photo by Jeff Gardenour