The Father Gabriel Richard baseball team may be hitting its stride at just the right time. After falling to top-ranked Madison Heights Bishop Foley in their first three meetings this spring, the Fighting Irish have beaten the Ventures in their past two games.

The most recent Irish win came in the Class C-D Catholic High School League Championships at Comerica Park.

Friday’s win at Comerica came in walk-off fashion against Bishop Foley for the second consecutive year and earned Gabriel Richard its third straight CHSL title. Before the current streak, Gabriel Richard had never won a league championship.

"There was a lot of strategy going on, we know each other pretty well," said Richard assistant coach Tom Dishman. "It was a good game, glad it turned out how it did."

Tied 2-2 in the bottom of the seventh, senior Dennis Olszewski hit a potential inning-ending double-play ball, but was able to reach on a fielder’s choice by beating the throw.

With two outs, Olszewski stole second to get into scoring position with senior catcher Conor Dishman, Tom's son, at the plate.

Despite Dishman’s reputation -- he holds the national record for consecutive games with a hit (58) -- Bishop Foley opted to pitch to him and Dishman made them pay by hitting a full-count single up the middle.

Olszewski slid head first -- uncontested -- into home plate to seal the win.

"Baseball minds said you’d walk him to set up the force. I was surprised they didn’t walk him." Tom Dishman said.

But even if Foley pitched around Dishman -- who is hitting above .500 this season -- the next batter in the lineup, Matt Wagner, is hitting in the high .400s.

If Gabriel Richard (25-4) and Bishop Foley (25-4) meet again this year, it will be in the Division 3 quarterfinals.

PICKING YOURSELF BACK UP

Huron’s Cindy Ofili came just short of qualifying for last year’s track and field state championships in the 100-meter dash and the 110-meter hurdles.

Entered in three individual events and a relay at Friday’s Division 1 regional, Ofili was determined to get over the hump.

The day took an unexpected twist when Ofili was disqualified from the 110-hurdles for a false start. She recovered admirably in her next two events, winning the 100-meter dash and leading off Huron’s first place 800 relay team.

Ofili’s day took another unfortunate turn in the 300 hurdles when she tripped over a hurdle in the early goings of the race. Despite falling flat, Ofili picked herself up and didn’t just finish the race, she finished under the state-qualifying time. This despite tripping on another hurdle later in the race.

“It was an unreal day for her, it was so unexpected,” Huron coach Keri Kirk said. “She came into this year with huge goals, huge aspirations and she might have been thinking a little too much. But she got it behind her and we look forward to her performance at states.”

TOP DOGS FALLING

The Pioneer girls lacrosse team, currently ranked No. 2 in the state by Laxpower.com, capped off its regular season with a bang by beating top-ranked Okemos on Monday, 13-10.

Okemos, two-time defending state champions in Division 2, had not lost to a Michigan team in three seasons. Pioneer is 14-3 and begins postseason play Wednesday against Plymouth Salem.

The Pioneer girls lacrosse team wasn’t the only team to upset a top-ranked opponent recently. The Skyline girls soccer team defeated Troy Athens, 2-1 on Monday. Troy Athens is currently ranked No. 2 in Division 1 by the Michigan High School Soccer Coaches Association.

TENNIS TITLE DEFENSE

The Pioneer girls tennis team took the first step in successfully defending its Division 1 state title last Friday by winning its region at Pioneer High School. Pioneer won six of eight flights and was runner up at No. 1 and No. 2 singles.

Saline and Huron also advanced to the state championships out of the regional by accruing the minimum 18 points. The Hornets had the two other champions out of the district in Marry Hanna (No. 1) and Jennifer Ho (No. 2).

In a Division 4 regional at Greenhills School, Father Gabriel Richard finished second and qualified for the state championships. Gabriel Richard senior Molly Geppner won the No. 1 singles flight championship.

STRONG SHOWING

Pioneer’s Katherine Hoevet knocked four seconds off of her personal best mile time at Friday’s Division 1 regional championship, winning the event in four minutes, 55.7 seconds, a time fast enough to qualify her for the Division 4 boys championships.

“I was surprised to do that well,” Hoevet said. “Those seconds are hard to come by once you get to a certain point.”

Hoevet wasn’t the only Washtenaw County athlete to have a strong showing at the weekend's regionals. A total of 46 events were won at various regionals this weekend by Washtenaw County athletes. The boys in the area won 16 individual events and five relays, while the girls were responsible for 18 individual event titles and seven relay championships.

All regional champions qualify for their respective MHSAA state championships on Saturday, June 4, as do those who had times under the qualifying standard. For a complete list of state qualifiers, visit MHSAA.com.

Have a story to tell about a local high school team? Email petercunningham@annarbor.com or call the prep sports desk at 734-623-2565. Follow Pete Cunningham on Twitter @petcunningham.