VW Cougars advance to ACME semifinals

Van Wert independent sports

ELIDA — Van Wert advanced to the semifinals of the ACME Baseball state tournament with a 5-1 quarterfinal win over Bellefontaine at Ed Sandy Field in Elida on Sunday.

It was Van Wert’s 10th consecutive win dating back to the regular season.

The Cougars never trailed in the game. AJ Proffitt opened the scoring with a second inning RBI single that plated Damon McCracken, then the next batter, Kaiden Bates, singled and drove in Ethan Mooney.

Elida’s lone run came in the bottom of the second when the Bulldogs scored on an error and the scored remained 2-1 until the top of the fifth, when an RBI single by Turner Witten plated TJ Stoller.

Stoller and Ethan Rupert scored on a two-RBI single by Aidan Pratt in the top of the seventh.

Stoller, Mooney and Profitt each finished with two hits and Luke Wessell earned the win on the mound by allowing just six hits and striking out six in seven innings.

The Cougars (19-2) will face Defiance in the semifinals at 3 p.m. this afternoon.