Schaefer, Soard among those swinging the sword for ND in loaded offensive lineup

No matter what the score is, one can never count out a group from Scioto County in any ballgame. Because when one least expects it, the best of the best teams from the county will seemingly jump up and deliver the knockout blow. It's been showcased on many occasions in the past, and on Saturday, the 2025 OHSAA Division VII State Champion Notre Dame Titans took their turn pulling off a comeback to remember in a game that will certainly be talked about for a long while.

Down 11-8 with just three outs to come back from a three-run deficit after seeing an 8-3 lead slip away, Notre Dame countered with a massive knockout blow to homestanding Boyd County. The Lady Titans capped the Tri-State Showcase with a bang by scoring five runs in the top of the seventh inning behind a two-run homer to center field by Kate Entler, an RBI double by Lyndsey Schaefer, a wild pitch and a sac fly RBI by Audrey Bach, resulting in a 13-11 win Saturday evening at Boyd County High School in a dramatic turn of events. Ball State signee Alayla Soard is no stranger to success.

Counting this season, Soard has hit an incredible 36 home runs since the beginning of her sophomore year, including 10 roundtrippers in 2026 — and eight alone since April 15. The shortstop believes that Saturday's triumph over Boyd County could very well be a defining win in Notre Dame's efforts to run it back and repeat as OHSAA Division VII State Champions once again. "This game really turned the page for us," Soard said.

"Before, we were a little down, but we knew that we had to come back. Our Prom was last night, so we all came back after that and played great. It really just brought a fire to our team that won't be put out right now and will continue throughout the whole season.