South Point upsets Westfall, ends Mustangs' season

• South Point pounded out a total of 13 hits to upend No. 1 seeded Westfall%2C 14-10.
• The Mustangs end their 2015 season at 19-5 after winning conference and sectional titles.

CHILLICOTHE – After digging themselves a hole, Westfall desperately tried to make several comeback attempts. However, the initial hole only continued to get deeper and the Mustangs eventually fell in with no way out.

The defending state champion Mustangs (19-5) ended their season in a Division III district final, Saturday afternoon, at the hands of a No. 7 seeded South Point club, 14-10.

Westfall, the No. 1 seed in its district, banged out 13 base hits against South Point starting pitcher Abby Hannah but couldn't hold down the fort on the defensive side of things, giving up 13 hits to the Pointers' offense and committing two errors that led to South Point' scores.

Hannah threw all seven innings for the Pointers (11-6), giving up 10 runs — seven earned — while striking out and walking three batters.

Mustangs' starting pitcher Cassidy Williams was chased early from the game after throwing just 2 2/3 innings. In that time frame, Williams gave up six earned runs on seven hits. In relief, Becca Brown came on to finish the workload in the circle for Westfall and in 4 1/3 innings of work, Brown gave up six earned runs as well, on six hits.

Westfall struck first blood in the bottom of the first inning when Williams logged a two run single to score Kelly Fuchs and 2015 SVC Player of the Year Regan Stonerock. The 2-0 lead for the Mustangs would be their largest and only lead of the contest.

South Point would answer immediately, in the top of the second, when Hallie Powell singled and Emilee Powell reached on an E5 to start things off. Both runners would advance on a passed ball before coming around to score, tying the game at two, on a two run single off the bat of Hannah.

In the top half of the third, South Point's Jamishua Anderson started the festivities off with a double in the left center field gap. Teammate Abbey Winkler followed with walk before both runners advanced one base via a sacrifice bunt from two hole Lexi Smith. The Pointers would then take a 4-2 lead thanks to RBI singles from both Haley Rawlins and Sylvia Griffith.

As Williams struggled to find ways to keep Pointers' hitters off balance, South Point continued to rake.

The lead would stretch to 5-2 on an RBI single from Leah Lawson and 7-2 on yet another two run single from Hannah — scoring H. Powell and E. Powell who had walked and got hit by a pitch.

Westfall showed signs of life once again in the bottom of the third as they got back within three runs, 7-4, on a two run single from Laura Smith. But the Pointers insisted on being relentless at the plate, regaining those two runs in the top of the fourth on RBI singles from H. Powell and E. Powell, making it 9-4.

The Mustangs' second rally attempt came in the bottom of the fourth inning. After Makayla Terry reached on an E6, lead-off spot Denise Arledge singled to put runners on first and second. Fuchs was the next batter and laced a ball down the right field line. Anderson — South Point's right fielder — allowed the ball to roll all the way to the wall and fell down retrieving it, heading way for Fuchs to run all 240 feet around the bases. Terry, Arledge and Fuchs all scored on the play, cutting the Pointers' lead to 9-7.

But if the Mustangs had picked up any sort of momentum in that sequence, it was eradicated during the top of the fifth.

The Pointers would put up a five spot, making it 14-7, on three hits, two walks and one Mustang' error.

In the Mustangs' last at bat, they managed to scratch out three runs on a Stonerock RBI single and one South Point miscue, rounding out the final score.

Leading the Mustangs at the dish was Arledge, who finished 3-5 with two runs. Stonerock followed, going 2-3 with a double, three runs and an RBI. Kelsie Robinson went 2-5 with two runs and a stolen base.

Westfall ends 2015 as the undefeated Scioto Valley Conference champions (14-0) and sectional titlists.

dwebb@chillicothegazette.com

Twitter: @dw1509