Fairfield falls to Portsmouth West in walk-off loss; finish as district runners-up
Lead Summary
By
Stephen Forsha-sforsha@gmail.com
PIKETON — On Saturday afternoon, those in attendance for the Division III SE District Final game between the Fairfield Lady Lions and Portsmouth West Lady Senators watched a pitchers’ duel for the ages, resulting in the Lady Lions falling 1-0 in 10 innings to finish as district runners-up.
Fairfield (21-5) battled strong all game long, but were held to three hits and committed one error, while PWHS finished with nine hits and no errors. The Lady Senators’ ninth hit of the game was the difference maker, as it was a 10th-inning home run by Emily Moore that sent Portsmouth West to the walk-off victory for the district championship.
“There were a lot of little things we didn’t capitalize on, but I’m obviously proud of these girls. My goodness, there was no quitting, there was no slacking. They were in a 10-inning dogfight, and I’m super proud of them,” FHS head coach Mark Dettwiller said. “I’m just so proud of these girls and how they fought (Saturday).”
For the Lady Lions, they held strong for 9.2 innings as the tough luck loss went to Caitlyn Quickle, though she pitched a strong game. Quickle finished with 9.2 innings in the circle, where she allowed one earned run on nine hits and two walks. Quickle totaled eight strikeouts and faced 39 batters. She ends the season at 13-4.
“Caitlyn did an outstanding job keeping them off-balanced,” Dettwiller said. “On that last pitch, she didn’t miss her spot, I think that kid just went down there and absolutely hit it.”
The win went to Sydney McDermott, who pitched 10 innings, allowing no runs on three hits and three walks. She faced 36 batters and struck out 14 batters for the game, as she improved to 24-2 on the season.
As for the Lady Lions, Quickle was 1-for-3 at the plate as she hit a double, while teammate Faith Miller was 1-for-4 and Sydney Hooper was 1-for-3 and she was hit by a pitch.
For the game, Fairfield left four runners on the bases, and PWHS had eight runners stranded.
Macie Bradford led Portsmouth West at 3-for-3 with a walk, while Moore was 2-for-5 with the one run and one RBI. Kate Rollins was 2-for-4 with a double.
For the season, the Lady Lions were champions of the Southern Hills Athletic Conference (Division I) with a record of 12-1, and they were 21-5 overall on the season.
“We had a great season and won the SHAC championship, which I’m super stoked about,” Dettwiller said. “I love getting out here playing the SOC, SVC and TVC teams come tournament time because it is a great time, and I love the tournament.”
The Lady Lions say goodbye to senior Halle Hamilton, who was the second baseman and captain of the team.
Fairfield head coach Dettwiller praised his lone senior on the roster.
“Halle probably played one of her best games all year defensively,” he said. “She hit the ball hard right at them, but I’m just so proud of her. She’s a phenomenal leader, four-year starter, but she’s just a fantastic kid and she will be missed. We thank her for all that she’s done for the program.”
Fairfield assistant coach Tom Purtell spoke about Hamilton and what she brought to the FHS program for the past four years.
“Halle is not just a special softball player, but a very special person,” Purtell said. “Halle leaves the program with conference and district awards, all-district scholar-athlete awards and two of the most clutch hits in program history. Both clutch hits came against Ironton in the 2019 regional semifinal game and this season’s regular-season come-from-behind win.”
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Fairfield (21-5) battled strong all game long, but were held to three hits and committed one error, while PWHS finished with nine hits and no errors. The Lady Senators’ ninth hit of the game was the difference maker, as it was a 10th-inning home run by Emily Moore that sent Portsmouth West to the walk-off victory for the district championship.
“There were a lot of little things we didn’t capitalize on, but I’m obviously proud of these girls. My goodness, there was no quitting, there was no slacking. They were in a 10-inning dogfight, and I’m super proud of them,” FHS head coach Mark Dettwiller said. “I’m just so proud of these girls and how they fought (Saturday).”
For the Lady Lions, they held strong for 9.2 innings as the tough luck loss went to Caitlyn Quickle, though she pitched a strong game. Quickle finished with 9.2 innings in the circle, where she allowed one earned run on nine hits and two walks. Quickle totaled eight strikeouts and faced 39 batters. She ends the season at 13-4.
“Caitlyn did an outstanding job keeping them off-balanced,” Dettwiller said. “On that last pitch, she didn’t miss her spot, I think that kid just went down there and absolutely hit it.”
The win went to Sydney McDermott, who pitched 10 innings, allowing no runs on three hits and three walks. She faced 36 batters and struck out 14 batters for the game, as she improved to 24-2 on the season.
As for the Lady Lions, Quickle was 1-for-3 at the plate as she hit a double, while teammate Faith Miller was 1-for-4 and Sydney Hooper was 1-for-3 and she was hit by a pitch.
For the game, Fairfield left four runners on the bases, and PWHS had eight runners stranded.
Macie Bradford led Portsmouth West at 3-for-3 with a walk, while Moore was 2-for-5 with the one run and one RBI. Kate Rollins was 2-for-4 with a double.
For the season, the Lady Lions were champions of the Southern Hills Athletic Conference (Division I) with a record of 12-1, and they were 21-5 overall on the season.
“We had a great season and won the SHAC championship, which I’m super stoked about,” Dettwiller said. “I love getting out here playing the SOC, SVC and TVC teams come tournament time because it is a great time, and I love the tournament.”
The Lady Lions say goodbye to senior Halle Hamilton, who was the second baseman and captain of the team.
Fairfield head coach Dettwiller praised his lone senior on the roster.
“Halle probably played one of her best games all year defensively,” he said. “She hit the ball hard right at them, but I’m just so proud of her. She’s a phenomenal leader, four-year starter, but she’s just a fantastic kid and she will be missed. We thank her for all that she’s done for the program.”
Fairfield assistant coach Tom Purtell spoke about Hamilton and what she brought to the FHS program for the past four years.
“Halle is not just a special softball player, but a very special person,” Purtell said. “Halle leaves the program with conference and district awards, all-district scholar-athlete awards and two of the most clutch hits in program history. Both clutch hits came against Ironton in the 2019 regional semifinal game and this season’s regular-season come-from-behind win.”
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