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EMIGSVILLE -- While gathering her equipment after her team's York-Adams Division I clash with Dallastown on Tuesday, Central York pitcher Taylor Rohrbaugh joked about all the homework she still needed to complete when she got home.
After her performance on the mound, however, it's clear that homework to Rohrbaugh isn't just for the classroom.
The sophomore learned a few things from an early-season 6-0 loss to the Wildcats just three weeks ago and used that to her advantage. She held the heart of the Dallastown lineup -- which collected six hits in that setback -- to just two hits on Tuesday.
Her teammates, on the other hand, pounded out nine hits and took advantage of four errors to roll to their 12th-straight victory,
The win sewed up the division title for the Panthers. Central, which has just one division game left, improved to 11-1 in the division and 16-2 overall. The Wildcats fell to 12-3 and 8-3.
Rohrbaugh, who struck out just four, admitted that she made some adjustments with the way she approached the Dallastown lineup.
"(Our coaches) definitely keep records on their batters," said Rohrbaugh, who also collected two hits while reaching base four times. "So (I) knew what to throw them in certain situations."
Those changes were effective. The visitors sent four batters or less to the plate in six of the seven innings. The Panthers, in contrast, were only set down in order once. They scored once in the second and twice more in the third to take a 3-0 lead.
The only time the visitors were able to string together any offense came in a three-run fourth. Dallastown's Sam Hartman and Kayla Merriman hit back-to-back singles to lead off the inning. Hartman scored on a sacrifice fly by Amanda Jones, while Merriman crossed the plate on a Kayla Collins double. Julia Snyder followed with a single that scored Collins, but a heads-up throw by right-fielder Angie Delise gunned down Snyder at second to end the inning.
Central restored a cushion for Rohrbaugh with a five-run fifth that effectively put the game out of reach. Kayla Resh and Courtney Hastings ripped back-to-back triples to start the frame. A couple Dallastown errors allowed Rohrbaugh and Jordyn Miller to reach safely. Courtney Jones drove in Rohrbaugh with a double before Kyla Caruso, the team's No. 8 hitter, came up with a big two-out single that drove in two more.
"It makes a big difference when the bottom of your lineup is getting on base," Central coach Barry Brenneman said. "Them getting on base just turns the lineup over."
The Panthers added three more runs in the sixth to go over the 10-run barrier against a Dallastown team that has become a bit of a thorn in their side the past few years. The Wildcats not only won the earlier matchup this season, they also won 2-of-3 games a year ago, including a victory that knocked Central out of the District 3-AAAA playoffs.
"To score over 10 runs on a team like that is really saying something," Brenneman said.
Brenneman credits a lot of his team's winning streak, which began after that loss to the Wildcats, to the play of Resh atop the lineup. The freshman has consistently reached base, which gives the 3-4 combo of Rohrbaugh and Miller opportunities to drive in runs early and often.
"She gets us started and we just go from there," Brenneman said. "We decided to put her at the top of lineup about 10 games ago and we've averaged 10 runs a game since."
Rohrbaugh has been the recipient of that support. She sounded downright giddy when asked about the contributions of her freshman left-fielder.
"Kayla is really stepping up her game," Rohrbaugh said. "She's one to watch out for for years to come. She's small, but mighty. That's for sure."
Resh finished two hits and two runs scored, while Hastings, Rohrbaugh and Caruso each collected two hits. Dallastown's Kayla Collins had a single and a double.
OTHER SOFTBALL
SPRING GROVE 13, DOVER 0: At Spring Grove, Nikki Filbey (two homers, five RBIs) and Jena Hull (three hits, two runs, one RBI) paced the Rockets. Spring Grove's Erika Heck and Jenna Jacoby combined for a two-hit shutout. Heck also had a two-run double. The Rockets (11-6 overall, 8-2 in York-Adams Division II) clinched at least a share of the division title.
RED LION 8, SOUTH WESTERN 7: At Red Lion, Hailey Orwig belted two homers to power the home team. Mackenzie Rumburg pitched a complete game to get the win. Sarah Bortner had four hits for the Mustangs.
KENNARD-DALE 13, WEST YORK 0: At Fawn Grove, Desi Joines pitched a one-hit shutout and struck out 14 in a game shortened to five innings because of the 10-run mercy rule. Joines also went 2-for-2 with a walk.
YORK CATHOLIC 11, BIGLERVILLE 10: At York Catholic, the home team scored three runs in the bottom of the seventh to earn the win. Carrie Fix pitched a complete game to get the win. She also doubled, as did Juely Baez. Kaitlyn Morrow and Julia Ruiz tripled for the winners.
SUSQUEHANNOCK 13, EASTERN YORK 9: At Glen Rock, Madi Shockey banged two doubles and Brea Chandler homered to lead the Warriors. Hannah Bentz also doubled for the winners. Sara Lynch pitched a complete game to get the win. She fanned six and walked two. Sierra Arnold went the distance in the loss.
DELONE CATHOLIC 25, YORK TECH 16: At Spry, Delone clinched the York-Adams Division IV title in a wild game where both teams were minus three starting pitchers. Delone improved to 10-3 in the division. Deanna Laughman (four hits, two RBIs) and Lauren Alascio (four hits) led Delone. Savannah Grimes (four hits), Dani Aikins (three hits) and Angela Johnson (three hits) led Tech.
BERMUDIAN SPRINGS 11, YORK SUBURBAN 6: At York Springs, Paige Dennison (three hits, three RBIs) led the Eagles. Paige Huntington got the complete-game win. Becca Barrett tripled and had two RBIs for Suburban. Emmy Turybury pitched a complete game in the loss and also tripled.
-- Reach Ryan Vander sloot at sports@yorkdis patch.com.
