Yorktown softball solidifies case as one of Class 3A's best
· Yahoo Sports
YORKTOWN — Yorktown softball knew that New Palestine was coming to town with revenge on its mind.
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Last season, the Tigers claimed the Hoosier Heritage Conference with a 2-0 win on the Dragons' home field. Yorktown went on to finish 7-0 in conference play for the first time in program history and still held the HHC traveling trophy entering its home contest against New Pal on Tuesday, April 21. With both teams ranked in the top four of Class 3A by the Softball Coaches Association of Indiana — Yorktown at No. 2 and New Pal at No. 4 — the matchup also represented the Tigers' biggest test of the young season.
They passed with flying colors.
Yorktown defeated New Pal, 5-2, to improve to 9-0 on the season and 2-0 in HHC play while keeping the traveling trophy in Yorktown.
"We knew it was going to be a battle," Yorktown coach Jeremy Penrod said. "After beating them last year at their place, we knew they were going to be hungry to come back and see us again. We have a traveling conference trophy, and we've had it ever since last year at their place, and it's nice to hang onto it."
Sophomore pitcher Liv Jones put together another fantastic performance in the circle, pitching all seven innings with two runs allowed (one earned) on seven hits and two walks with 13 strikeouts — her sixth game with double-digit Ks out of seven total pitching appearances. This season, Jones has struck out 83 out of 143 batters faced and currently boasts the seventh-best ERA in the state at 0.56.
"Last year against them, we threw a lot of fastballs, a lot of changeups, just up, down and out, which kept them off balance. She did a great job," Penrod said. "This year, I can call five pitches at any time, and she's hitting her spots pretty well — hitting them really well, to be honest with you. That's a great hitting team over there; they've always been a good hitting team. She pitched great, our defense needs to be better, but it just feels good to protect our home and take down a big opponent like New Pal."
Stats for @YTigerSoftball@OliviaJone25196 : 7 IP, 7 H, 2 BB, 2 R, 1 ER, 13 K … 1-3 w/ solo bomb at plate@annarinker2026 : 1-3 w/ two-run bomb@olivia_jaromin : 1-2 w/ solo bomb
— Cade Hampton (@CadeHamp10) April 22, 2026
Seven different Tigers logged hits
Jones hasn't just elevated her pitching game — she has also taken a leap forward offensively. Her 1.174 slugging percentage is the best on the team and currently ranks 33rd statewide. She leads the Tigers with four home runs, including a solo bomb in the third inning on Tuesday that put Yorktown in front for good.
After a stellar freshman season, Jones has put in the work to make sophomore year even better. Even when she was helping Yorktown volleyball to a final four run this fall, she was putting in work for softball every day.
"I think I've just really practiced all winter and just worked on speed and spin," Jones said. "I was out in the yard or indoors just always working, every single day. Even in volleyball season, I was staying up until 10, pitching in my basement. I really wanted to dial in this year."
It's easy to see just how dialed in Jones is when watching her pitch. Her energy and emotion after each strikeout is unmatched, but she keeps that exact same energy whenever a teammate makes a big play in the infield.
For all of the highlight plays she makes as a pitcher and a hitter, Jones' favorite part of softball is being there to uplift her teammates.
"Being a pitcher, you have to have energy, and that's what I've always been told," Jones said. "The girls, we all thrive off who's on energy, and I feel like I'm always on. I'm always in the dugout cheering, and I just love to be in the center and cheering for my teammates. It's my favorite thing to do about this game."
After Jones' homer in the third inning put Yorktown up 2-1, the bats fell quiet on both sides for a few frames. The Tigers went down in order in the fourth and only managed one hit in the fifth before finally breaking through in the sixth inning. After junior first baseman Alexia Fields singled, senior catcher Anna Rinker drilled a two-run home run to increase the lead. Junior left fielder Olivia Jaromin followed with a solo bomb for her first homer of the season.
"Offensively, we came into this game prepared," Jaromin said. "I think a lot of us knew what was coming from the pitcher. We just told ourselves that we need to be confident, patient, aggressive, and I think that helped us have quality at-bats this game. I've been not necessarily eager to hit one, but you know, time comes, and it felt great, especially in a game like this one."
The Dragons managed another run in the top of the seventh that would have tied the game if not for Yorktown's sixth-inning three-spot. Penrod commended his team for staying aggressive yet patient throughout the game on offense.
"We know the good pitching that we're up against," Penrod said. "I said last week that we've got a tough road ahead this week. I mean, we're going to see another great team Thursday in Fishers, and we don't expect anything less than what we've just seen, so we've been really working on plate discipline and being aggressive. I felt like they did that tonight."
Yorktown has made a few early-season statements now with wins over Western and New Pal, but the schedule only goes up from here. The Tigers are at 4A No. 5 Fishers on Thursday, April 23, and have also scheduled Westfield, Hamilton Southeastern and Cathedral, just to name a few. With a 9-0 start under their belt, the Tigers are confident they can hang with anyone and put together a potentially special season.
"We're a confident team, and we've been a confident team since January," Penrod said. "We knew we had huge shoes to fill, not that we're filling those shoes or trying to replace a player. It's just the 'next man up' mentality, and these girls have done an amazing job. They've had confidence since January. They're ready for any challenge that they're faced with."
Yorktown will host county rival Delta (5-5, 1-2 HHC) in another HHC contest on Wednesday, April 22, before its visit to Fishers on Thursday, April 23.
Contact Cade Hampton via email at [email protected] or on X, formerly known as Twitter, @CadeHamp10.
This article originally appeared on Muncie Star Press: Yorktown softball tops New Palestine between two top-ranked 3A teams