BIG BLAST — Big Red’s Sena Smith jumps across home plate while teammates celebrate her home run in the fifth inning of Friday’s Division II, East District sectional final win over West Muskingum. - Andrew Grimm

STEUBENVILLE — The Big Red softball team is going back to the district tournament.

Steubenville jumped ahead of West Muskingum early and battled their way past the Tornadoes, 9-6, in a Division II, East District sectional final at the Crimson Complex on Friday.

Big Red (16-7) jumped ahead 5-1 after two innings, then, after the Tornadoes had battled back, pulled away with a three-run sixth to advance.

“That’s what it’s about at this time of the year, survive and advance, get one more run than the other team … you could go 800 different ways with 800 different cliches but all it boils down to is you gotta have one more,” Big Red head coach Gus DiMarzio said. “Right now we’re playing to have one more game.”

After West Muskingum scored first in the top of the first, Big Red came right back in the bottom half and pulled ahead.

Sena Smith drew a walk to lead things off and stole second, then scored on a Gia Bowman sac bunt to even the score. Sophia Zorne then doubled in another run to give Big Red its first lead, and it would not trail again.

Riley Zorne made it 3-1 with a sac fly, then Julianna Cramer singled in another run to make it 4-1.

An inning later, Sadie Edwards made it a 5-1 Steubenville lead with an RBI triple.

Not ready to go away quietly, West Muskingum rallied to within a run with a three-run third, aided by a Big Red error.

That remained the score until the bottom of the fifth when Smith launched the first pitch she saw far over the fence in straight-away center to make it 6-4.

West Muskingum got back within a run in the top of the sixth, but Big Red again had an answer in the bottom half.

Riley Zorne’s RBI single proved to be the winning run, making it 7-5, then Cramer popped up a ball that the West Muskingum infield missed, bringing in another run. Smith then doubled and plated another run, making it 9-5.

“Riley’s the one that comes through clutch,” DiMarzio said. “That DP spot has been tough, we’ve been struggling there, rotating kids in hoping one of them would catch fire and she came up clutch. She battled and came up big.”

The Tornadoes got their first two batters on in the top of the seventh and got a run across to get within three, but Edwards shut the door and finished off the complete game win.

She ended up with five strikeouts and two walks on the day.

“Sadie is a tough kid,” DiMarzio said. “She hadn’t played a whole lot (coming into the season) because of her injury and she is just getting better every single week. She is getting better with every game, every pitch. She’s got some battle in her, she’s got some toughness.”

Big Red will take on top-seeded Dover (22-3) at Conotton Valley on Monday in the district semis. Dover topped Indian Valley, 8-2, in their sectional final. The teams split an early season doubleheader at Dover back in April.

“At this time of the year, every game is going to get harder and harder,” DiMarzio said. “We’ve got to go battle and hope that at the end of the game we’ve got one more run than they do.”

OHSAA Division II East District

Sectional final at the Crimson Complex

No. 5 Big Red 9, No. 9 West Muskingum 6

West Muskingum 1-0-3 0-0-1 1 – 6 10 1

Big Red 4-1-0 0-1-3 x – 9 13 1

WEST MUSKINGUM (18-8): Bare (LP, 1IP, 4R, 4ER, 4H, 1K, 1BB) and Bowers. Antonetz 2S, RBI; Brown S; Foster 2S, RBI; HAmmer S, RBI; Puckett S, 2RBI; Huey RBI; Reese S; Bowers S; Bare S.

BIG RED (16-7): Edwards (WP, CG, 6R, 5ER, 10H, 5K, 2BB, 1HBP) and Smarrella. Smith HR, D, 2RBI; Bowman S, RBI; Edwards T, 2S, RBI; Smarrella 2S; S. Zorne D, RBI; Beall S; R. Zorne S, 2RBI; Cramer 2S, 2RBI.