Sports Writer

GLEN DALE — Having a dominant pitcher in softball during the postseason is crucial but having a reliable No. 2 is what separates the best from the rest.

Ryleigh Morgan stood out in that role on Wednesday as she tossed a complete game to spark an 8-1 John Marshall victory over visiting Brooke in the Class AAA Section One opener.

Morgan struck out five, walked one and allowed just three hits over seven innings and also showed she could supply the lumber as she delivered a two-run home run and a two-run double in the triumph.

“She had a nice game,” John Marshall coach Ed West said of Morgan. “I thought she hit her spots well and she didn’t get behind in the count too much. It’s crucial to have a strong No. 2 pitcher so we don’t have to rely on one girl everyday. It’s definitely a luxury.”

John Marshall will stay at home to play Morgantown in tonight’s sectional battle.

Brooke, however, will take on Wheeling Park in an elimination game tonight.

“Our kids will play hard and battle (tonight),” Brooke coach Jim DiCarlo said. “Our mentality is, ‘We want to play one more day.’ So we’ll keep trying to do that.”

Morgan got the scoring started with a two-run double in the first, followed by a RBI single from Shelby Koontz that gave the Monarchs a 3-0 advantage after one.

Reese Ward extended the JM lead in the third when she singled and came around to score on a passed ball.

The Monarchs blew it open in the fourth. Payton Tucker got the show started with a double and Ava Blake continued to swing a hot bat with a RBI single for a 5-0 cushion.

That’s when Morgan stepped to the plate and launched a two-run bomb over the left field fence to give her squad a 7-0 upper hand.

Emily Druschel added the final run for JM with a RBI single in the sixth.

Brooke’s lone run came off the bat of Baylei Jones, who supplied a RBI fielder’s choice.

Blake tallied three hits, Tucker collected a single and a double, while Sophia Adkins and Adrianna Skrzyneki each turned in a pair of hits for the Monarchs.

“I thought we swung the bat pretty well,” West said. “We were pretty disciplined at the plate. We didn’t chase too many bad pitches. (Foresha) had a nice changeup and did a good job. She had us off balance several times with that changeup.”

Brooke pitcher Alexa Foresha fanned two and walked three and Landry Bone garnered two singles for the Bruins.

“Morgan pitched really well,” DiCarlo said. “We did hit some balls that just couldn’t find holes at times. Lex pitched pretty well but you have to give them credit, they got hits when they needed to. They have a good team. I thought she did a good job of keeping them off balance but they are still good enough to stay back and hit the ball hard. You have to almost play a perfect game to beat them.”