LIMA, Ohio — Bath captured the ACME District 5 championship in commanding fashion on Thursday night, defeating Allen East 8-0 to punch their ticket to next weekend's state tournament.

Allen East, coming out of the losers' bracket, needed two wins to claim the title—but the Wildcats shut down that possibility with a dominant performance.

The turning point came in the fourth inning, when Bath tallied four runs on five hits, including an RBI triple for Zach Welsch. 

With the 6-0 lead entering the sixth inning, Evan Cross ripped a double to put runners on second and third, and Jacob Lepley's slow roller stayed in the grass long enough for Karson Green to score. Moments later, Alex Walls drove in Cross with a single to left, stretching the margin to 8-0.

Starting pitcher Braylon Leach took care of the rest. The rising sophomore went the distance, striking out four in a complete-game shutout. His fourth and final strikeout sealed the win and the championship for Bath.

"I had to knock off the nerves at first," Leach said postgame. "They were hitting the ball great. But we got runs up early, had the lead, and felt comfortable."

In other action, St. Henry claimed the District 4 title with a 14-7 win over Coldwater. Meanwhile, Montpelier and Fairview both earned District 7 semifinal wins to set up Saturday's championship matchup.

Districts 1 and 6 will be decided on Sunday. Delphos St. John’s (District 2), Perrysburg (District 3), and Kalida (auto-bid as host) have already secured their spots. Once all brackets are finalized, the state quarterfinals will be played Saturday, July 12 at Holy Name Ballpark in Kalida.

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