Fairfield Lady Lions win 5th straight district championship
Lead Summary
By
Stephen Forsha-sforsha@gmail.com
CHILLICOTHE — Overcoming a rough first inning, the No. 2 seeded Fairfield Lady Lions not only battled back to tie the score in the Division III SE District championship game following an early deficit, but they continued their streak of consecutive district championships to five by defeating the No. 1 seeded Wheelersburg Lady Pirates, 8-5 on Saturday.
The fifth straight district championship for the Lady Lions was the fourth consecutive title for the current Fairfield senior class, and they did so after trailing by three runs going into the bottom of the second inning at Unioto High School.
As the Lady Lions did in the district semifinals earlier in the week, they didn’t let a deficit get to them. Rather, they did what they’ve done all season long, and that is hit the softball into play, force teams to make miscues, make the proper adjustments and play their style of softball.
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That style of play allowed the No. 4 state-ranked Lady Lions to not only eventually tie the score at 3-3 by the time the second inning came to a close, but later took a 6-5 lead in the fifth inning.
For the game, the Lady Lions out-hit Wheelersburg, 16-13, as WHS committed five errors against Fairfield.
“We talk about mental toughness, and Wheelersburg is a really good ball team, and they came out and got up on us. We went down one, two, three in the first inning, and those kids really hit,” FHS head coach Mark Dettwiller said of the first inning. “As the game went on, and with Kaiti (White) in the circle, plus our defense, we found a couple of holes in their swings and we capitalized on it.
“I mean, they put balls into play, and even if they did get a base hit, we held them and took care of the little things and got the job done.”
Getting to the point where the Lady Lions were able to tie the score and take the lead meant the first inning was one of misfortune for Fairfield, but one of success for Wheelersburg.
The top part of the first couldn’t have gone any worse for Fairfield when they went three-up and three-down at the plate.
That was followed by Wheelersburg starting the game with a single, another single and then a home run off the bat of Rylie Hughes for a very quick 3-0 lead with just one out on the scoreboard. Hughes finished the game 3-for-4 with two home runs and four RBI for Wheelersburg.
Fairfield answered the Lady Pirates with a lead-off double by Layla Hattan (2-for-4) to start the top of the second inning. She moved to third on a groundout to the pitcher by Lauren Arnold (2-for-4, two RBI) and scored as the throw to third base sailed past the Wheelersburg third baseman.
Following a second out on a groundout, Hayleigh Lowe (3-for-4, two runs, one RBI) hit a double to left-centerfield and went to third off an infield single hit to third base by Molly Thackston (2-for-4, two runs, one RBI).
“Hayleigh had one of her best days at the plate, and from top to bottom the girls hit the ball. I’m proud of them,” Dettwiller said.
Next, Halle Hamilton struck out, but the third strike was dropped and she took full advantage of the miscue by WHS, racing to first base safely. That allowed both Lowe and Thackston to score runs on the error, tying the score at 3-3.
Hughes struck again with a big-time hit, launching the ball over the fence for the second time, hitting a second two-run home run for a 5-3 lead back in favor of Wheelersburg in the bottom of the second.
None of that really mattered to the Lady Lions, as the reigning district champions continued stayed patient at the plate. They opened the top of the third inning with consecutive singles by Megan Gragg (3-for-5) and Kaiti White.
Hattan also singled in the next at-bat, but Gragg was called out at home. The fourth straight single this one by Arnold, scored White, making it a 5-4 deficit.
The Lady Lions eventually tied the score at 5-5 with Lowe batting in Hattan for the tied score of 5-5.
Both teams threatened to add runs to their side of the scoreboard as Wheelersburg left a runner stranded in the bottom of the third, and Fairfield left two runners on the bases in the top of the fourth.
Again, Wheelersburg threatened to add more runs by having a single and a walk in the in their half of the fourth inning, but White battled strong, striking out two of the final three batters she faced in the inning.
“Mentally (Kaiti) kept her calm, and between her, Lauren (Arnold) and myself, we found some holes in their swing and we capitalized on it, and they don’t score after the second inning,” Dettwiller said. “I don’t believe there is anyone tougher than Kaiti mentally or physically. We kept taking care of the little things, and she’s just a phenomenal kid.”
Finally, the lead went to the away team on the scoreboard at the start of the fifth inning, as Fairfield took their first lead of the game, and never relinquished it, with a 6-5 advantage.
Fairfield’s first hit of the inning was a single by Ashley Sanderson, which was hit to centerfield. She went to second on a single by Lowe and scored off a fielder’s choice hit into by Thackston, as an errant throw allowed Sanderson to race home for the one-run lead.
For good measure, Fairfield scored two final runs in the top of the seventh inning, as Lowe and Thackston both scored runs off two wild pitches.
The game saw Lyndee Spargur, White, Sanderson and Hamilton all had one hit.
White was the winning pitcher, improving to 23-1 overall on the season. The senior allowed five runs (all earned) on 13 hits and two walks. White struck out six batters and walked none as she threw 93 total pitches.
The loss went to Sydney Spence, who in five innings of relief allowed four runs (three earned) on 11 hits and one walk, as she finished with four strikeouts.
Getting the no-decision was Sarah Claxon, who in two innings allowed five runs (all earned) on five hits and no walks. Claxon struck out two batters.
The schedule the Lady Lions played this season has been a huge asset to them this postseason, playing against teams from various levels and programs who are state-ranked.
“Our schedule, we didn’t back down from anybody and we played a lot of state-ranked opponents,” Dettwiller said. “Pretty much anybody we could get on the schedule, we played. We didn’t shy away from anybody, and we played a lot of Division II schools, and we made the trip to Akron to play there. These kids have seen high-caliber pitching. If we take care of the little things, we’ll be all right.”
There are also the coaches from the entire softball program, starting at the youth leagues, as Dettwiller and assistant coach Tom Purtell spoke highly of the levels before the varsity program.
“I’ll tell you, the hard work of the whole system is why we’ve had the success we’ve had,” Dettwiller said. “It starts with the little league, when you have great coaches out there who volunteer. They listen to Tom and I with what we want them to work on and how we want things structured, so when they get to junior high they can continue to work with them.
“Once they get through that and they come here as freshmen, they are ready to go at the varsity level.”
Purtell spoke of the junior high program.
“When they get to junior high they work, with Mindy Sanders and Fred Hattan there, and Fred’s been there for 10 years,” Purtell said. “They do excellent work for our program.”
“There is also the work and dedication Kayla (Overstake) Dettwiller and Lesley Hattan have put into the program … anything we need, they will do,” Mark Dettwiller said. “Kayla is a volunteer and scouts for us, she throws batting practice, and I really want to thank those two for everything they do. We also have the smartest and best softball fans in the state because they know the rules, know the game and are there to support us.”
Next for the Lady Lions is the Sweet 16 as they will play in the Division III Regional Semifinals against Ironton (26-1) at Lancaster High School at 6 p.m.
“We watched Ironton, and they are a really good team. They have a freshman pitcher who throws the ball really hard, and they run-ruled Westfall (in the district finals), and we’ll go get in the box and see what happens,” Dettwiller said.
This will be the 11th time in program history the Lady Lions have played in the regional round and the seventh time in the past nine years.
The fifth straight district championship for the Lady Lions was the fourth consecutive title for the current Fairfield senior class, and they did so after trailing by three runs going into the bottom of the second inning at Unioto High School.
As the Lady Lions did in the district semifinals earlier in the week, they didn’t let a deficit get to them. Rather, they did what they’ve done all season long, and that is hit the softball into play, force teams to make miscues, make the proper adjustments and play their style of softball.
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That style of play allowed the No. 4 state-ranked Lady Lions to not only eventually tie the score at 3-3 by the time the second inning came to a close, but later took a 6-5 lead in the fifth inning.
For the game, the Lady Lions out-hit Wheelersburg, 16-13, as WHS committed five errors against Fairfield.
“We talk about mental toughness, and Wheelersburg is a really good ball team, and they came out and got up on us. We went down one, two, three in the first inning, and those kids really hit,” FHS head coach Mark Dettwiller said of the first inning. “As the game went on, and with Kaiti (White) in the circle, plus our defense, we found a couple of holes in their swings and we capitalized on it.
“I mean, they put balls into play, and even if they did get a base hit, we held them and took care of the little things and got the job done.”
Getting to the point where the Lady Lions were able to tie the score and take the lead meant the first inning was one of misfortune for Fairfield, but one of success for Wheelersburg.
The top part of the first couldn’t have gone any worse for Fairfield when they went three-up and three-down at the plate.
That was followed by Wheelersburg starting the game with a single, another single and then a home run off the bat of Rylie Hughes for a very quick 3-0 lead with just one out on the scoreboard. Hughes finished the game 3-for-4 with two home runs and four RBI for Wheelersburg.
Fairfield answered the Lady Pirates with a lead-off double by Layla Hattan (2-for-4) to start the top of the second inning. She moved to third on a groundout to the pitcher by Lauren Arnold (2-for-4, two RBI) and scored as the throw to third base sailed past the Wheelersburg third baseman.
Following a second out on a groundout, Hayleigh Lowe (3-for-4, two runs, one RBI) hit a double to left-centerfield and went to third off an infield single hit to third base by Molly Thackston (2-for-4, two runs, one RBI).
“Hayleigh had one of her best days at the plate, and from top to bottom the girls hit the ball. I’m proud of them,” Dettwiller said.
Next, Halle Hamilton struck out, but the third strike was dropped and she took full advantage of the miscue by WHS, racing to first base safely. That allowed both Lowe and Thackston to score runs on the error, tying the score at 3-3.
Hughes struck again with a big-time hit, launching the ball over the fence for the second time, hitting a second two-run home run for a 5-3 lead back in favor of Wheelersburg in the bottom of the second.
None of that really mattered to the Lady Lions, as the reigning district champions continued stayed patient at the plate. They opened the top of the third inning with consecutive singles by Megan Gragg (3-for-5) and Kaiti White.
Hattan also singled in the next at-bat, but Gragg was called out at home. The fourth straight single this one by Arnold, scored White, making it a 5-4 deficit.
The Lady Lions eventually tied the score at 5-5 with Lowe batting in Hattan for the tied score of 5-5.
Both teams threatened to add runs to their side of the scoreboard as Wheelersburg left a runner stranded in the bottom of the third, and Fairfield left two runners on the bases in the top of the fourth.
Again, Wheelersburg threatened to add more runs by having a single and a walk in the in their half of the fourth inning, but White battled strong, striking out two of the final three batters she faced in the inning.
“Mentally (Kaiti) kept her calm, and between her, Lauren (Arnold) and myself, we found some holes in their swing and we capitalized on it, and they don’t score after the second inning,” Dettwiller said. “I don’t believe there is anyone tougher than Kaiti mentally or physically. We kept taking care of the little things, and she’s just a phenomenal kid.”
Finally, the lead went to the away team on the scoreboard at the start of the fifth inning, as Fairfield took their first lead of the game, and never relinquished it, with a 6-5 advantage.
Fairfield’s first hit of the inning was a single by Ashley Sanderson, which was hit to centerfield. She went to second on a single by Lowe and scored off a fielder’s choice hit into by Thackston, as an errant throw allowed Sanderson to race home for the one-run lead.
For good measure, Fairfield scored two final runs in the top of the seventh inning, as Lowe and Thackston both scored runs off two wild pitches.
The game saw Lyndee Spargur, White, Sanderson and Hamilton all had one hit.
White was the winning pitcher, improving to 23-1 overall on the season. The senior allowed five runs (all earned) on 13 hits and two walks. White struck out six batters and walked none as she threw 93 total pitches.
The loss went to Sydney Spence, who in five innings of relief allowed four runs (three earned) on 11 hits and one walk, as she finished with four strikeouts.
Getting the no-decision was Sarah Claxon, who in two innings allowed five runs (all earned) on five hits and no walks. Claxon struck out two batters.
The schedule the Lady Lions played this season has been a huge asset to them this postseason, playing against teams from various levels and programs who are state-ranked.
“Our schedule, we didn’t back down from anybody and we played a lot of state-ranked opponents,” Dettwiller said. “Pretty much anybody we could get on the schedule, we played. We didn’t shy away from anybody, and we played a lot of Division II schools, and we made the trip to Akron to play there. These kids have seen high-caliber pitching. If we take care of the little things, we’ll be all right.”
There are also the coaches from the entire softball program, starting at the youth leagues, as Dettwiller and assistant coach Tom Purtell spoke highly of the levels before the varsity program.
“I’ll tell you, the hard work of the whole system is why we’ve had the success we’ve had,” Dettwiller said. “It starts with the little league, when you have great coaches out there who volunteer. They listen to Tom and I with what we want them to work on and how we want things structured, so when they get to junior high they can continue to work with them.
“Once they get through that and they come here as freshmen, they are ready to go at the varsity level.”
Purtell spoke of the junior high program.
“When they get to junior high they work, with Mindy Sanders and Fred Hattan there, and Fred’s been there for 10 years,” Purtell said. “They do excellent work for our program.”
“There is also the work and dedication Kayla (Overstake) Dettwiller and Lesley Hattan have put into the program … anything we need, they will do,” Mark Dettwiller said. “Kayla is a volunteer and scouts for us, she throws batting practice, and I really want to thank those two for everything they do. We also have the smartest and best softball fans in the state because they know the rules, know the game and are there to support us.”
Next for the Lady Lions is the Sweet 16 as they will play in the Division III Regional Semifinals against Ironton (26-1) at Lancaster High School at 6 p.m.
“We watched Ironton, and they are a really good team. They have a freshman pitcher who throws the ball really hard, and they run-ruled Westfall (in the district finals), and we’ll go get in the box and see what happens,” Dettwiller said.
This will be the 11th time in program history the Lady Lions have played in the regional round and the seventh time in the past nine years.