Dominant pitching performance by Malena Toth leads Canfield to state title game

When Canfield star pitcher Malena Toth gets an early lead, she’s tough to defeat.

After Caylee Ortiz hit a deep home run to center field to give the Cardinals a lead, Toth took over.

Malena Toth had a big day

Toth dominated a powerful Kenton Ridge offensive team to lead Canfield to a 3-0 win its second straight state championship appearance.

She took a perfect game into the seventh inning and finished with a one-hit shutout and 13 strikeouts.

“Malana came in the game with a real chip on her shoulder from last year,” Canfield head coach Michael Kernan said. “Kenton Ridge is a really good team but she just fired away. We’re excited to get to the next game at this point.”

Kenton Ridge entered the game scoring in double-digits 13 times this season and 20 or more runs six times this year.

Ortiz and Jenna Triveri added run-scoring singles in the sixth inning.

“Caylee has been hitting big for us all season,” Kernan said.

Canfield’s next step

Canfield is looking for the second state championship in state softball.

The team will play Bryan in the state title game at 3 p.m. Saturday at Firestone Park in Akron.

They previously won in 2008 and finished as state runner-up last season.

Playing in the state title was an important goal for Canfield this season. Kernan said their tournament run as been their revenge tour after falling 9-0 in the state title game last season.

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This story was originally published May 31, 2024 at 1:15 PM.