HS softball: Carlinville and Staunton cool off Southwestern, spoil Birds’ bid at SCC title
Grace Burris, pictured throwing a ball to first base, fired a one-hit shutout for the Staunton High School softball team against Southwestern at Piasa May 14. The Bulldogs defeated the Birds, 3-0. Photo contributed.
By JACKSON WILSON
Enquirer Democrat Reporter
The Southwestern High School softball team entered the final week of the regular season in control of its own destiny for a South Central Conference title but the Birds’ red hot bats went cold at an inopportune time against two proven aces.
Carlinville 4, Southwestern 1
Southwestern came into Loveless Park on a 12-game winning streak and with a 6-0 SCC record, but Carlinville broke both strings with a 4-1 victory and tightened the top of the SCC standings.
Despite some command issues, Hallie Gibson went the distance, worked around seven walks and was able to limit the Birds to one run on one hit while striking out seven.
Offensively, Isabella Tiburzi had two big hits at the plate and drove home all four runs for the Cavaliers. Josie Hagen had the lone RBI for the Birds.
Grace Strohbeck took the loss in the circle for Southwestern, allowing four runs on seven hits with a pair of walks and six strikeouts in six innings.
The result of this game brought Carlinville, Gillespie and Staunton back into the mix for at least a share of the conference crown. Gillespie and Southwestern were now in a one-loss tie while Staunton remained close behind at 5-2.
The Cavaliers closed out the regular season with four additional wins over Lincolnwood (5-0), Jacksonville (6-0), Greenfield (12-1) and Pleasant Hill (4-2).
Carlinville is 17-9 overall.
Staunton 3, Southwestern 0
Staunton was up next for Southwestern on May 14 and the Birds continued to feel the pressure that comes with closing out a championship. Despite being at home, the Piasa offense just couldn’t get any type of momentum generated against another tough pitcher in Grace Burris.
Burris fired a one-hit shutout and only allowed two Southwestern players to reach base. The Bulldogs handed the Birds a second SCC defeat, 3-0, and ultimately spoiled Southwestern’s bid for the SCC title.
Roughly 15 minutes after the game went final, the news broke that Gillespie had run the table on the rest of its conference schedule and won the SCC outright. With a 10-0 win over Hillsboro, the Miners clinched the SCC for the fifth year in a row. Gillespie finished 8-1 in league play while Staunton and Southwestern finished in a tie for second place at 7-2.
Staunton ended the regular year with 18 wins in 21 games.
Southwestern finished the SCC season with a 14-3 road win at Vandalia May 15 and entered the playoffs 15-5 overall.
