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CHILLICOTHE — It took awhile for South Webster’s bats to fully awaken from their slumber on Wednesday.
CREDIT: Derrick Webb/SOSA
But once they did, they did with a vengeance.
After seeing their 3-0 lead erased in the top of the fifth inning with one swing, the Jeeps (21-4) answered with an explosive eight-run fifth before cruising to a 13-3 victory over Zane Trace (15-9) in a Division III district semifinal.
“Starting out strong and coming out with the first hit just kind of got our momentum going,” South Webster’s Ashlee Spence said. “Everything went from there and it got a rally started.”
Spence tallied multiple hits throughout the evening, as did five of her teammates.
In total, South Webster pounded out 18 base knocks while every single starter reached base safely. The cause of that offensive outburst? Well, in short, the Jeeps have faced top-tier pitching all year long.
“Facing [Wheelersburg] and West is really helpful. Their pitchers are really good,” Spence said. “We also get live pitching from [South Webster head coach] Andy [Messer] in our facilities and that helps a lot … just seeing live pitching. Stuff like that helps us see the ball a lot better [at the plate].”
Right off the bat, the Jeeps took a 1-0 lead.
Addi Claxon reached base on error before coming around to score on an RBI double from Skylar Zimmerman, a ball that was pocketed perfectly in the left-center field gap.
Then, in the second, the Jeeps went ahead 2-0 when Ava Messer singled in Jaiden White, who had reached on the Pioneers’ second error. Claxon later followed suit, singling to bring in Messer and make it a 3-0 tally after two.
That’s all the offense that took place until Zane Trace’s Kinley May stepped to the plate in the top of the fifth. With two ducks on the pond, May unloaded on an offering and sent it over the centerfield wall to force a 3-3 tie.
However, the momentum shift didn’t last long.
SW responded immediately by sending 12 hitters to the plate in the bottom half, scoring eight runs on nine hits in the process to take a commanding 11-3 lead.
Ashlee Spence, Bella Claxon, Lauren Kaltenbach, White, Makayla Raynard, and Laiken Lancaster all singled before Zimmerman and Bella Claxon, who each reached base twice in the inning, both knocked in runs with doubles to provide an exclamation point.
White went the distance in the circle, allowing three earned runs on five hits while striking out three. But she did the brunt of her damage at the plate, finishing a perfect 4-for-4 with a double, a triple, three runs and two RBIs.
“I came out with a really strong team behind me,” White said. “We all hit very well. There were a couple of mistakes here and there, but not many of them.”
Ava Messer was 3-for-4 with three runs and an RBI, Zimmerman went 2-for-3 with a double, a run and two RBIs, Raynard was 1-for-4 with a double, a run and two RBIs, Lancaster also chipped in, going 2-for-4 with a double, a run and two RBIs, and Bella Claxon joined the hit parade, going 2-for-4 with a double, a run and an RBI.
As for Zane Trace, May led the offense, going 1-for-2 with the three-run bomb while Gracey McCullough finished 1-for-2 with a double. Rachel Chamberlin and Laynie Scott also helped out, each going 1-for-2 with a run.
While the Pioneers end their season, South Webster advances to a Division III district final against Adena — a 7-1 winner over Belpre — at 5 p.m. on Sunday back at Unioto High School.
“We have to come into the game without laying down,” Spence said. “It’s our last game if we lose, so we have to think about that and use it to fuel our fire.”
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