NEW MARKET — Southmont’s softball team was looking for another hero as they took on Greencastle in the 2A Sectional 41 semifinals on Tuesday.
MaKinzie Wood stepped up, took care of things, and the Mounties defeated the Tiger Cubs 5-1.
The junior ripped the first pitch she saw in the sixth inning to the left-field foul pole. The game was tied 1-1 a second before she lasered her shot.
Three South runners, moving on contact with two outs, set new track records for the 60-foot dash as they raced towards home plate.
It wasn’t tied any more.
It was the fifth double of the season for Wood, and the three RBI put her at 15, but none of those earlier hits or runs batted in were more important than in a sectional semifinal that your team had been struggling in all game.
“She just crushed it,” Mounties mentor Dan Taylor said of the blast. “We needed a hero, and just like so many times this season, someone stepped up. It’s been like that for nearly all of our 17 wins. Someone stepped up in a big moment, in a big role, and answered the bell. We proved again we are a pretty good team.”
The win, over the three-time defending sectional champs was another tester.
After a 1-0 victory over North Putnam on Monday, the Mounties head into the title game having beaten the No. 5 team in 2A (the Cougars) and the three-time champs (the Tiger Cubs).
They will take on South Putnam in the championship game. After playing a Monon Conference foe the first two nights, they have not played against the Eagles this season.
“It came down to the little things,” Taylor said. “Our mantra when we are successful is simply put the ball in play offensively and make their defense make plays. We did that.”
The Greencastle defense had their difficulties, as they committed six errors. Three of them led to Southmont runs in the sixth and seventh innings. In all, three of the five South runs were unearned.
The win was also a come-from-behind, as a South defensive miscue allowed the only Tiger Cubs run to score in the fourth.
The comeback started in the fifth, when leadoff hitter Kaylee Turner took a pitch off her shoulder and went to first. Wood followed with a sacrifice bunt. Turner stole third and scored on an error.
The Mounties final at-bat was unique.
The hero from Monday, Sammie Crosby, fell behind in the count 0-2 and then drew a walk. Just like Monday, Nevaeh Ward came in to run for her, and just like Monday, eventually scored.
But there was more.
On Monday, Kendall Priebe laid down a sacrifice bunt, and on Tuesday, did the exact same thing. The result was different however, as an error put her on base.
Turner came back up and hit a high chopper that tipped off Greencastle pitcher Ali Hassler’s glove, and that changed the spin of the ball enough and slowed it down enough that Priebe won the race to second base.
Wood cleared the bases on the next pitch, and Wood scored on another error.
“Put the ball in play,” Taylor said on several occasions after the game.
The Mounties turned in a clean card defensively behind Ella Barry, who threw a four-hitter, striking out 10 and walking none. She has 35 strikeouts of Greencastle hitters in 21 innings worked this season and 212 for the season.
The Mounties, in ending the three-year Greencastle streak of titles also broke a streak by Hassler.
The Franklin College bound senior had never lost a sectional game in her career.
“Hassler is just so good,” Taylor said. “She deserved a little better defensive help tonight. She is a great pitcher, just like Ella is a great pitcher.”
Hassler allowed four South hits, walked two and struck out three.
The win sends the Mounties into the sectional championship game for the first time since 2022. They are looking for their first title since 2019. They stand at 17-5 for the season, while the Tiger Cubs season ends at 13-11.
“This has not been an easy road,” Taylor said. “We’ve been tested, and I like that as we head into the championship game. This team has shown the best of themselves these last weeks of the season. I can’t begin to say how proud I am of them and their efforts.”
The championship game, at Southmont, is scheduled for a 6 p.m. Wednesday first pitch.
