HEGINS - Katie Whelski and Haley Nestor didn't have big offensive seasons for Williams Valley last spring.
They made some clutch plays and delivered some clutch hits - especially during the run to the PIAA Class A state championship - but overall didn't finish with high batting averages.
Whelski and Nestor took a major step toward having a larger impact at the plate Wednesday afternoon against Schuylkill League Division II rival Tri-Valley.
Whelski rapped an RBI single and Nestor followed with a two-run single in the top of the first inning as the Vikings cruised to a 9-2 victory.
"We already played our first rival (Minersville), and we knew this was our next big game. ... We wanted to jump on them right away,'' Haley Nestor said.
Whelski, who bats fifth, finished 2-for-4 with a double, a run scored and an RBI. Nestor, who hits sixth, finished 2-for-4 with three RBIs.
"Our whole team hit well this game,'' Haley Nestor said. "We lost a little focus at the end of the game, but right in the beginning we jumped on them.''
The top of the lineup also did its job for the Vikings (3-0, 2-0 D-II). Leadoff batter Hannah Nestor reached base in all five of her plate appearances (two singles and three walks) and scored three runs. In games against Minersville and Tri-Valley this season, Nestor has gone 4-for-5 with a double, a home run, five runs scored and two RBIs.
No. 2 hitter Rayanne Hawk went 2-for-4 with a run scored, an RBI and a sacrifice bunt.
"It didn't seem like anybody had any timing,'' Williams Valley coach Lee Reiser said. "I'm glad we hit well enough to score some runs, but we didn't have our timing, either. We haven't been outside since we played Minersville (April 3).
"Everybody's in the same boat,'' he added. "It's probably going to be mid-April until people start playing the way they're capable of playing.''
Williams Valley added a run in the second inning on Kylie Doyle's RBI groundout and used four Tri-Valley errors to extend the lead to 9-0 in the fourth inning.
The game, though, got sloppy as the Vikings finished with four errors. Tri-Valley (4-1, 2-1) made five.
"I was disturbed we didn't play defense the way we normally play. ... We'll take a lot of extra infield (today),'' Reiser said.
Down 9-0, Tri-Valley got two runs back in the bottom of the fourth inning. Haley Schwalm scored on an error and Cat Troutman hit an RBI single.
With wins at Minersville (1-1, 1-1) and at Tri-Valley, Williams Valley has taken an early lead in the Division II standings. Today, the Dawgs play at Minersville.
"We looked a little intimidated to start the game, and Williams Valley came over here - being the champions that they are - they beat us in every phase of the game, including coaching,'' Tri-Valley coach Marty Shade said.
"There was a chance we were going to get 10-runned,'' he added, "and we fought through it, had some pride and made the game go seven innings.''