Upper State bound! Catawba Ridge, Fort Mill softball move on in playoffs
Catawba Ridge and Fort Mill have more softball to play.
With Catawba Ridge’s (4A) one win and Fort Mill’s (5A) back-to-back, come-from-behind wins on Friday — the two teams from Fort Mill are headed to their respective classification’s Upper State playoff stage. In other words, they’re a best-of-three series win away from a state finals berth.
Here’s how the Copperheads and the Yellow Jackets won on Friday night — plus a rundown of all the other softball and baseball playoff action in York, Chester and Lancaster counties.
Softball scores
Fort Mill 4, Dorman 3
The Fort Mill Yellow Jackets defeated the Dorman Cavaliers 4-3 in the second game to complete a sweep and win the 5A District 1 championship tournament at Dorman.
The Yellow Jackets forced the second and deciding contest with a 4-2 win in the first game.
In the title game, Dorman took a 3-0 lead, but the Jackets rallied for four runs in the fourth and held on for the victory. Trista Reid and Brynn Bartolini led Fort Mill with two hits each. Ava Balsinger added one hit and drove in a pair of runs. Maddie Drerup worked five innings and earned the win.
In the opening game Fort Mill trailed 2-1 after six innings. They tied it at 2-2 in the top of the seventh before scoring twice in the eighth to get the win and force the second game.
Ally Hall led the offense with two hits and two RBI. Bartolini and Balsinger added two hits each to the 10-hit attack. Drerup pitched a complete game to get the win. She allowed four hits and struck out three.
Fort Mill will advance to next week’s Upper State series with an overall record of 17-4.
Byrnes 6, Clover 1
The Byrnes Rebels defeated the Clover Blue Eagles 6-1 to win the 5A District 2 championship at Byrnes.
The loss ended the season for Clover, which had an overall record of 16-11.
Lugoff-Elgin 6, Indian Land 2
The Lugoff-Elgin Demons topped the Indian Land Warriors 6-2 to complete a doubleheader sweep and win 4A District 2 tournament at Indian Land.
The Demons won the first game 8-4 in nine innings to force the second game for the district title.
In the second game the Demons took a 3-1 lead after one inning and never trailed again. Both teams scored in the third and Lugoff-Elgin was in front 4-2. They added two more in the sixth to complete the scoring.
In the first game, the Demons took a 2-0 lead in the second. The Warriors tied the count at 2-2 in the fourth. It stayed that way until the Demons tallied six runs in the ninth and held off a Warrior rally in the bottom of the frame to get the victory and force the second game.
The two losses ended the season for Indian Land. They finished with an overall mark of 15-7.
Catawba Ridge 10, Greer 0
The Catawba Ridge Copperheads routed the Greer Yellow Jackets 10-0 to win the 4A District 1 championship at Catawba Ridge.
The Copperheads opened the scoring with two runs in the bottom of the first and broke the game open with six more in the third. They completed their scoring with a pair of runs in the fourth.
They made the most of five hits and took advantage of six Greer errors in recording their third shutout win in the playoffs.
Chloe Burger pitched a complete game and earned the win. She allowed only two hits and struck out ten.
The win puts Catawba Ridge in the Upper State championship series next week against Lugoff-Elgin. The Copperheads — in their first full season as a program — are now 22-7 overall on the year.
Legion Collegiate 10, Ninety Six 3
The Legion Collegiate Lancers topped the Ninety Six Wildcats 10-3 to win the 2A District 2 tournament at Ninety Six.
The win was the second of the day. The Lancers, who played out of the loser’s bracket, won the opening game 4-0 to force the second game for the title.
The two wins improved the Lancers to 21-6 overall. They will play in the Upper State championship series next week.
Andrew Jackson is Lower State bound with 9-3 win over Latta
The Andrew Jackson Volunteers defeated the Latta Vikings 9-3 to win the 2A District 4 championship at Andrew Jackson.
The Vols erased a 2-0 deficit with four runs in the bottom of the first. They added three more in the second frame for a 7-2 cushion, and completed the scoring with single runs in the fourth and sixth innings.
Skylar Huffman pitched a complete game and got the win. She scattered seven hits and struck out four.
Huffman and Savanna Parker led the hitting attack with one hit and three RBI each. Maddie Baker added two hits to the nine-hit attack.
Andrew Jackson improved to 14-5 with the victory. They will play in the Lower State playoff series next week.
Dixie 9, Lewisville 6
The Dixie Hornets topped the Lewisville Lions 9-6 in the championship game of the 1A District 2 tournament at Dixie.
The Lions took a 1-0 lead in the third. Saleena Rollins opened the frame with a single and scored later on a single by Malaurie Martin.
The Hornets countered with seven runs in the fourth. They got four hits and the Lions committed three errors.
Lewisville came back with four runs in the fifth to cut the deficit to 7-5. Rollins highlighted the outurst with a three-run homer.
The Lions made it 7-6 with a score in the fifth inning, but Dixie added two more to compete the scoring.
The loss ends the season for Lewisville, which finished with a overall record of 13-10.
Baseball results
AC Flora 6, York 2
The AC Flora Falcons defeated the York Cougars 6-2 in the championship round of the 4A District 2 tournament at AC Flora.
Both teams scored a pair of runs in the third inning, and it stayed that way until the Falcons added a pair of runs in the fifth. They completed the scoring in the fifth with two more tallies.
Trace Thompson led York with two hits. Hudson Robinson and Cooper Parks each had a hit and a run batted in.
The loss ended the season for the Cougars, who finished with a overall record of 22-8.
Legion Collegiate 4, Gray Collegiate 3
The Legion Collegiate Lancers edged the Gray Collegiate War Eagles 4-3 in a winner’s bracket game in the 2A District 2 tournament at Gray Collegiate.
The Lancers trailed 2-1 when they scored twice in the fifth to take a 3-2 lead. Hunter Fryzowicz drove in the two runs with a single.
The teams traded scores down the stretch and the Lancers held on for the win.
Xavier Pelzer went six innings and was credited with the win. He allowed nine hits and struck out seven.
The Lancers, who are now 18-7 overall, advance to the championship round of the tournament next week.
Andrew Jackson 16, Barnwell 3
The Andrew Jackson Volunteers routed the Barnwell War Horses 16-3 in a winners bracket game in the 2A District 4 tournament at Barnwell.
The Vols got nine hits and took advantage of six War Horse errors in recording the one-sided win.
Andrew Jackson scored 10 runs in the first three frames to put the game away.
Landon Peavy led the attack with two hits and four runs batted in. Bryce Helms added three hits and two RBI. Skyler Hegler got a pair of hits and drove in two runs.
Kyle Percival pitched three innings and got the win. He struck out seven.
The win improved the Volunteers, who defeated Marion 12-2 on Thursday night in the first round, to 13-7 on the year. They will advance to the championship round in the district tournament next week.
What happens now?
Most district champions across the state are now established.
The Catawba Ridge, Fort Mill, and Legion Collegiate softball teams are the only teams from The Herald’s coverage area to earn a spot in the Upper State playoffs on Friday night. Andrew Jackson softball earned a spot in the Lower State playoffs. View a representation of the softball bracket on the SCHSL website.
The only other area teams still in the state title hunt are Andrew Jackson and Legion Collegiate baseball. These 2A teams saw their postseasons temporarily delayed earlier this week after an issue caused by a Legion ineligible player threw the playoffs into chaos. AJ is competing in the Lower State playoffs; Legion is competing in the Upper State playoffs. The Upper State and Lower State champions in the 2A baseball playoffs will be established early next week. View the 2A baseball bracket on the SCHSL website.
All other baseball and softball teams in The Herald’s coverage area have been eliminated.
Alex Zietlow contributed reporting.
This story was originally published May 21, 2021 at 11:26 PM.