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Rylee Morris slapped a two-out, two-run single in the top of the seventh inning to lift Indianapolis Lutheran to a 4-1 win over defending champion Pioneer in the Class A championship game.

Morris sent the hit to center field on a 1-2 pitch from Pioneer freshman Hailey Cripe to score Kerri Selzer and Gabby Moore, who had previously singled and walked, respectively, to break a 1-1 tie. Later in the inning, Quinn Johnson delivered an RBI single to finish the three-run rally.

Senior Miranda Dunn pitched the final 1 1/3 innings for the victory. Starter Kaylee Gregory and Dunn combined to hold down the high-scoring Panther offense which came in averaging 11.3 runs per game.

The victory for coach Kevin Schmidt’s squad gives the Saints their third state championship and first since 2007. Lutheran also won the Class A title in 2004.

Top-ranked Pioneer (31-3) had sought a title repeat after beating North Central (Farmersburg) for the championship in coach Gabrielle Thomas’s first season in 2018.

Morris had two hits for Lutheran, while Kylie Farris had two hits for the Panthers.

Pioneer's Alexis Robinson wins Class A Mental Attitude Award 
Members of the IHSAA Executive Committee announced Alexis Robinson of Pioneer Junior Senior High School as the winner of this year’s Mental Attitude Award in Class A Softball.

The award is annually presented to a senior participant in the state finals who best demonstrates mental attitude, scholarship, leadership and athletic ability and is nominated by her principal and coach.

Playing shortstop for the softball Panthers, Robinson was also a member of the school's state runner-up volleyball team last November and also participated in swimming during her career. She is a First Team All-State and Academic All-State selection in softball and has been named her team's most valuable offensive player three times.

Robinson has served as National Honor Society vice president, class vice president and has been involved in the Pioneer Athletic Council and Pep Club. Academically, she graduated eighth in her class of 73 students with a 3.8 GPA. She is the daughter of James and Rhonda Robinson of Royal Center, Ind. and plans to study neuroscience in the fall at IUPUI.

Robinson is the second straight Pioneer player to win the award following Alyssa Shaw a year ago and the third athlete from the school to win an IHSAA mental attitude award just this school year. Classmates Haley Gleitz won in 1A volleyball and Dustin Sparks was the honoree in 1A football, both last November.

Indiana Farm Bureau Insurance presented a $1,000 scholarship to Pioneer Junior Senior High School in the name of Alexis Robinson.