Published: 10:47 PM, Tue May 15, 2012
South View's softball season ends with 3rd loss to Wilmington Ashley
HOPE MILLS - The student manning the iPod between innings at South View's game against Wilmington Ashley hoped to rally the Tigers as they headed into the bottom of the seventh.
With L.L. Cool J encouraging the fans, "Don't call it a comeback; I've been here for years," the Tigers faced a seven-run deficit and needed the comeback of the season to advance.
But the comeback never came. Instead, the Tigers managed a single run in the final inning, coming up short in an 8-2 loss to Ashley in the second round of the NCHSAA 4-A playoffs.
The top seed out of the Mid-South, South View ends its season 20-6, with three of those losses coming at the hands of Ashley, the No. 2 seed from the Mideastern.
Ashley (18-5) will face the winner of Purnell Swett and West Johnston, which was postponed until 5 p.m. tonight.
Trouble started early for the Tigers, who gave up four runs in the first inning. Lead-off batter Taylor Carter reached on an error when pitcher April Costa booted a grounder. After Crystal Harrell flied out, Shytonia Williams' double pushed Carter to third, and Drew Dickson doubled her home.
With Williams and Dickson on, Drew's sister Sehal Dickson hit a three-run homer to pad the score.
Costa struggled throughout the night. The senior led Cumberland County in strikeouts with 187 through the first round of the state playoffs, but she sat only two of the Eagles down on strikes.
Costa allowed 13 hits, a walk and six earned runs.
"We knew that they're a hard-hitting team," Costa said. "It was a matter of whether we came out to play. I didn't get the calls that I needed, but I think we just weren't mentally prepared for this game."
The Tigers, young with just Costa and catcher Miah Nash as starting seniors, struggled at the plate against Harrell.
Harrell struck out five, the Tigers made poor pitch selections. Eleven South View hitters were retired on balls caught in the air.
"I think our youth showed tonight," Tigers coach Kellie Aldridge said. "We had some young kids make mistakes. But those kids are going to grow up in the next couple years, and they'll learn from what happened here tonight."
Wilmington Ashley 8, South VIew 2
Ashley 400 210 1 - 8 13 1
South View 001 000 1 - 2 6 3
Harrell and B. Williams. Costa and Nash. W - Harrell. L - Costa
Leading hitters: A - Harrell 2-4 (2B, 2 RBIs); S. Dickson 1-4 (HR, 2 RBIs). SV - Costa 2-4 (2B, run), Bilal 1-3 (2B), Nash 1-3 (2B), Dickerson 1-3 (2B, run)
Records: Wilmington Ashley 18-5, South View 20-6