CANFIELD TIES UP THE AAC

BOARDMAN OH-  Canfield built a comfy lead late and had just enough in the tank to fend off a Boardman rally, hanging on for a 6-5 win Friday night.

The Cards were cruising after jumping out to a five-run cushion by the sixth, thanks to a big two-run knock from Sydney Lutz in the fifth that flipped the game in their favor. They kept the pressure on at the plate, drawing six walks and cashing in with timely hits from seven different players—including Lutz, Sofia Castronova, and Alexis Johnson.

But Boardman didn’t go away quietly. They chipped into the lead in the bottom half, scoring runs off a walk and a single to make things interesting. Jocelynn Torres put them on the board earlier in the fourth with an RBI single, and Gabi Sferra came off the bench to drive in two more. Ward paced the Spartans with a 2-for-3 night.

Canfield’s pitching combo got the job done. Camryn Hrina got the ball to start, tossing 2.2 innings of shutout ball before giving way to Paris Lindgren, who locked in for the final stretch, punching out four and allowing just one run over 3.1 innings.

Boardman turned a clean double play and showed plenty of fight, but it wasn’t enough to pull off the comeback. Next up, Canfield hits the road to face Mentor on Saturday, while Boardman looks to bounce back at home Monday against West Branch.