NORMAL — Geneseo Middle School softball made its first appearance at the state tournament a winning one Friday, defeating Effingham Junior High 9-2 in the IESA Class 3A quarterfinals at Champion Fields.

Geneseo wasted little time taking control. The Lady Leafs scored three runs in the first inning and two more in the second to build a 5-0 lead. After four scoreless innings, Geneseo added a run in the sixth and three in the seventh. Effingham scored once in each of the final two innings.

Mara Castro led Geneseo at the plate, going 3-for-4 with a run scored and four RBIs. Harper Peters went 3-for-4 with three runs scored, while Natalia Smith finished 2-for-4 with three runs. Sienna Temperly drove in two runs. Geneseo collected 11 hits in the victory.

Castro also went the distance in the circle, allowing two runs while striking out 13 over seven innings.

The victory improved Geneseo to 13-0 and extended a historic season for the fifth-year GMS softball program. The Lady Leafs entered the tournament undefeated after beating Washington Central 6-3 in Tuesday's sectional championship.

Next Up: Geneseo faces Stanford Olympia in the Class 3A state semifinals at 11:30 a.m. Saturday at Champion Fields. Olympia advanced with a 3-2 quarterfinal victory over Edwardsville Liberty. The winner will play for the state championship at 3:30 p.m.; the third and place game will be played at 1:30 p.m.