Annville-Cleona's softball team had already clinched a Lancaster-Lebanon League playoff berth prior to Wednesday's completion of a suspended game at Pequea Valley. But there was still something to play for in the final two-plus innings in Kinzers.

Needing a win to clinch a tie for the Section Four title with the Braves, A-C wasn't able to rally once the game was restarted and lost, 4-1. The setback makes the Little Dutchmen 11-5 in Section Four and 13-5 overall.

Annville-Cleona trailed 2-1 in the top of the fifth with two outs and a two-strike count on the batter when rain halted play Friday. The Dutchmen had runners on first and third and were actually one strike away from the game being official Friday when it was suspended.

Hoping the near-loss was an omen when they returned to Kinzers on Wednesday, A-C wasn't able to push across the tying run in the top of the fifth and ended up surrendering two more runs in the bottom of the fifth in falling into a three-run hole.

Darian Brenner finished 2-for-3 for the Dutchmen, and Crystal Miller knocked in A-C's lone run with a groundout in the fifth Friday before the game was suspended.

Elsewhere Wednesday:

Softball

roundup

  • Elco 5, Northern Lebanon 3: In Fredericksburg, the Raiders scored five straight runs in the middle of the game and held on for the Section Three triumph. The win makes Elco 7-8 in Section Three and 8-11 overall, while the Vikings slipped to 4-12 and
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    5-14.

    Trailing 1-0, the Raiders scored three times in the third and two more in the sixth to take a 5-1 lead, which held up until NL pushed across two runs in the bottom of the seventh to make things interesting. Taylor Albert and Ashlee Albright stroked doubles in the Vikings' winning effort.

  • Lancaster Mennonite 17, Lebanon Catholic 1: On Assumption Hill, the Blazers scored 13 runs in the first and closed out the game with four in the fourth, keeping the Beavers winless on the season. Catholic was also its own worst enemy as it committed 10 errors, nine of which came in the first inning.

    Abby Schrum doubled and had two of the Beavers' three hits.

  • Elizabethtown 22, Lebanon 0: In Lebanon, the Bears put the game away early, scoring 11 times in the first and nine more in the second en route to the three-inning victory. E-town used nine hits and 15 Lebanon walks to push across its 22 runs.