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South Range falls to Wheelersburg in D-III title game
By Tom Williams
AKRON
It took the South Range High School softball team five at-bats before they figured out Wheelersburg ace Faith Howard’s pitches.
Sophomore Felicia Gaeta’s three-run homer sliced the Pirates’ lead to two runs and gave the Raiders hope in a Division III state championship game Saturday at Firestone Stadium.
But Howard quickly regained control, limiting the Raiders to just two more hits in recording the final nine outs. Her masterful changeup floated like a butterfly, but its impact stung the Raiders like a bee as the Pirates won, 8-3, for their first state championship.
Howard (22-2) limited the Raiders to five hits, striking out five and walking none.
“Her changeup was pretty much killing us,” said Morgan Czopur, the Raiders’ lone senior.
Junior Caragyn Yanek — who set records for the Raiders for innings pitched, wins and strikeouts — said Howard was one of the best South Range has seen.
“A good pitcher needs to hit her spots and she was a very good pitcher,” said Yanek (23-3).
South Range (30-4) was playing for its first state title in any sport.
“Our goal was to get one game beyond last year and we did,” South Range head coach Jeff DeRose said.
The Raiders were regional semifinalists in 2015.
“We had a fantastic season,” DeRose said. “Hats off to these kids — they’re amazing. We fell behind, but it’s not like we gave up.”
The Pirates produced 13 hits. Four of the first five were bloop hits that triggered a 5-0 lead in the third inning.
The Pirates (27-2) threatened in the first inning with runners at third and second with one out. Breanna Kleiber lined out to shortstop Codi Taylor who alertly fired a strike to third baseman Morgan Smith before Kalie Coleman could get back to the bag.
But the Raiders were unable to stop the Pirates in the next two frames.
Three bloop hits in the second inning (Kasey Bergan’s past second base, Howard’s in shallow left field and Taylor McQuay’s in right-center field ) produced a 2-0 lead.
Yanek needed 30 pitches to get out of the third inning. Raygan Reyes led off with a bloop single past second base. After Michal Cunningham singled, Yanek hit Kasey Bergan to load the bases.
Laiken Salyers’ sacrifice fly scored Reyes and Howard singled down the left-field line to score Cunningham.
Czopur credited Gaeta’s “amazing home run” for reversing momentum.
Freshman Hanna Dennison led off the fifth inning with a single to center. Smith reached on an error by shortstop Cunningham. One pitch later, Gaeta, a sophomore, crushed the ball over the left-field fence.
“I hit a high, inside pitch,” said Gaeta who was unaware of the ball clearing the fence. “I thought it had bounced [over].”
DeRose chimed in: “I knew it was gone off the bat.”
Touching home “felt amazing,” Gaeta said. “I was so glad to get our team some runs, to [lift] us up a little bit.”
In the sixth inning, the Pirates scored three more times powered by Kleiber’s triple and Bergan’s double.
The Raiders and Pirates could meet again next June. The Pirates will lose four starters to graduation (Cunningham, center fielder Reyes, first baseman Salyers and right fielder Lexy Bair), but will return Howard (22-2), a junior.
Czopur is the only starter who won’t return for South Range. Yanek, Taylor and Smith are juniors and Dennison, the catcher, is a freshman. Gaeta (center field), Lydia Baird (second base), Madison Weaver (first base) and Hope Smith (right field) are sophomores.
“We’re going to be strong again,” DeRose said. “We’re excited, we expect to be back here next year. Anything short of this is a disappointment.”
Saturday’s game was the final varsity contest for Czopur, who was a four-year starter on the girls basketball team and played three seasons of softball. Her teams qualified for regionals five times (twice in basketball, three times in softball).
“This season has just been amazing,” Czopur said of the Raiders’ first state appearance. “We all became so close — I can’t wait to watch them next year.”