South Central defeats Altamont to capture regional crown

May 23—The third time was indeed the charm for the South Central softball team.

After defeating Altamont twice one week ago, the Lady Cougars and Lady Indians matched up one more time — this one with more at stake.

Behind a four-run fourth inning, South Central defeated Altamont, 7-1, to capture a Class 1A regional championship at Webster Family Park in Kinmundy Friday night.

Kaitlyn Swift and Ella Watwood had two hits for the Lady Cougars, while Taegan Webster, Brooklyn Garrett, and Lily Malone had the other three.

"It was really exciting," said Garrett of the win. "We came in knowing that we had to play our best, and we knew that Altamont had two very good pitchers and there would be some speed. So, we just came in ready, and Taegan knew she had to throw strikes, and we knew we had to keep most of them off-base because they were going to be aggressive."

Webster finished with two RBIs in the game, while Malone and Swift had one.

Where Webster shined more so, however, was in the circle. She allowed three hits, one earned run, and three walks with six strikeouts. She threw 101 pitches, 61 percent for strikes in her seven innings of work, too.

"She was hitting spots," South Central head coach Ted Kerner said. "She walked a couple early, but then she settled in a little bit, and we made some plays behind her."

Webster only showed one moment of weakness in the game, as she gave up her only run in the third inning.

Lanie Tedrick started the third by drawing a walk. Sophia Pearcy then hit a single before both runners moved up one base after Ellie McManaway grounded into a fielder's choice.

Claire Boehm then laid down a bunt attempt. However, it was right to Halle Smith — the Lady Cougars' first baseman — who took the out herself to prevent a run from scoring.

When it looked like South Central was about to escape the inning without any damage, though, the Lady Indians had other ideas.

On the first pitch she saw, Peyton Osteen drove in Altamont's only run after hitting the ball right to Smith, who tossed it to Kyra Swift to try for the force out. Officials ruled that the second baseman was off the base just as the ball hit her glove, though, allowing the run to score and making it 1-0.

The Lady Cougars wouldn't let that mistake bother them, either, as they scored in the bottom half of the frame to tie the contest.

Ella Watwood started the frame with a single before Kyra Swift pushed her to second on a sacrifice bunt.

Taegen Webster followed that with a single that allowed Watwood to score to make it 1-1 before Laney Webster struck out to end the frame.

Taegan Webster then returned to the circle, where she allowed a hit to Grace Lemke before striking out her next three batters, leading to the offense having another chance to strike — which it did.

Garrett started the bottom of the fourth with a single before Smith reached on an error by the Altamont shortstop.

Malone then made it 2-1 on a single that scored Garrett before Kaitlyn Swift singled herself, and Smith scored on a passed ball to make it 3-1.

A walk to Kyra Swift would then load the bases before Taegan Webster hit a line drive to right field that the fielder couldn't handle, causing an error and allowing two runs to score to make it 5-1.

South Central finished with seven hits while getting to a pitcher that the Lady Cougars had struggled against in the third-place game of the National Trail Conference Tournament. Lemke allowed three hits, two earned runs, and four walks with 10 strikeouts in that game.

"We've been hitting pretty well lately; been hitting the ball hard a lot, but for us to put seven runs on the board against them, that's a big accomplishment," Kerner said.

South Central improves to 24-10 on the season and will take on top-seeded Casey-Westfield in a sectional semifinal Tuesday at 4:30 p.m. at Casey-Westfield.

As for Altamont, head coach Megan Burrus will lose four seniors off the team next year — all of which she deems "irreplaceable."

After the game, Burrus gave a brief thought about each of her seniors.

She said, "Julie wasn't with us every day; she is a huge FFA kid, but we tried to get her in there, but it didn't work out. But, there is no bigger heart than hers. She knew her role and took it to the limit. When she was here, you got everything out of her. Ciara was out with a concussion for four weeks, battled through it, and earned her spot back. I think that slowed her down for the end of the season, but she is a bubbly kid all of the time. Bailey was the No. 1 kid for four years. She didn't start today because she, Grace, and I talked, and I wasn't sure what to do. In my gut, I thought Grace, because of how it went last time and Bailey being the great kid that she is, said that she was confident with her teammate. That's the kind of kid Bailey is. Ellie, a four-year starter, she'll be tough to replace because of her honesty. If someone's warming up, she'll say that this is not working. She knows the game, works her butt off, and if she has an off day, there are no excuses."

Contact EDN Sports Editor Alex Wallner at 618-510-9231or alex.wallner@effinghamdailynews.com.