CHESNEE, SC - Chesnee Post 48 finished off the home slate of their first trip through American Legion softball play on Tuesday night with a doubleheader sweep of Inman Post 45.
"It feels really good to come out and play well at home,” said Chesnee Post 48 head coach Ashley Westbrooks. “It’s something we have really done all season." In game one, Chesnee Post 48 pulled out a 4-1 win thanks to an excellent performance by Sam Carver in the circle. After Carver kept Post 45 off the board in the top of the first inning, Post 48 used small ball to take a 1-0 lead in the bottom of half of the inning. Mattie Martin drew a leadoff walk and advanced to second on a Carver ground out before an error allowed her to advance to third. Carver later scored on an Ali Scruggs RBI sac fly. Post 45 quickly responded as Kennedy Woodruff worked a one out walk before stealing second and later scoring on a Post 48 error to tie the game at 1-1 in the top of the second inning. Carver got all the runs she needed in the bottom of the third inning as Post 48 batted around with Ali Scruggs picking up her second RBI with a single and Mikayla Cannon hitting a two RBI double to increase the Post 48 lead to 4-1. Carver pitched a five inning complete game while only allowing three and striking out four with the lone run being scored being an unearned run. Game two saw another solid performance in the circle for Post 48 and this time it came from Olivia Hall. Inman’s Tori Earle and Eliana Deyoung drew a walk and single to lead off the game for Post 45 before Earle later scored on an error. After the run Hall buckled down and took control as she got a fielder's choice groundout along with back-to-back strikeouts to end the threat. Hall's battery mate Olivia Tolleson tied the game in the bottom of the second inning as she drove in Harley Grady with a RBI single. Grady worked herself to third thanks to a single, a stolen base, and a sacrifice groundout by Loren Potter to setup the scoring opportunity. Grady picked up a RBI on a fielder's choice attempt in the bottom of the third inning to give the Eagles the lead. Katie Faith Watson followed with a RBI single while Loren Potter delivered the big blow of the inning with a two RBI single to make it 5-1 in Post 48's favor. Grady picked up her second RBI with a single in the bottom of the fourth inning while Post 48 added another run when Olivia Hall scored on an error. Olivia Tolleson once again delivered the big blow of the inning with a two RBI double to give her four RBIs in the game. Post 45 attempted a comeback in the top of the fifth inning as Chloe Dunlap hit a RBI double and Sydnee Spencer hit a RBI single, but Hall was able to put an end to Post 45’s comeback attempt. Hall pitched a complete game with five hits allowed and eight strikeouts as only two of the three runs she allowed were earned. Chesnee Post 48 got a strong night from both their pitchers on Tuesday to wrap up their home slate which Coach Westbrooks was proud of on Tuesday. "Sam did what she always does which is to show up and show out” said Westbrooks. “Olivia hasn't pitched much for us this summer but when she came out tonight and found her groove she took control of the game." Chesnee Post 48 will wrap up the regular season on Thursday as they travel to Cowpens Post 125 as Inman Post 45 will wrap up their regular season on Thursday as well when they host Buffalo Post 87. Both games have a 6:00 PM scheduled first pitch. INMAN, S.C. – First place in League Six was up for grabs on Thursday evening as the Spartanburg Post 28 Mustangs traveled to Jim Everhart Field for a showdown with Inman Post 45.
Trailing by five entering the latter stages of the contest, Inman pieced together a late rally and edged Spartanburg by an 8-7 tally. The Mustangs staked themselves to an early 3-0 lead with two hits and a sacrifice fly, including a Davis Cardew triple to right field. Inman scored twice in the bottom of the third without registering a hit. The first two batters for Post 45 – Mitch Mitchell and Grayson Selepes – reached on a walk and a hit-by-pitch. Jimmy Rosengrant laid down a bunt and reached on a two-base error by the Mustangs, which allowed Mitchell to score. Selepes crossed home plate moments later on a Hunter Lancaster RBI fielder’s choice, which cut the Mustangs’ lead to 3-2 after three innings. “This group has surprised me," said Inman head coach Steve Skinner. "They’ve been real loose, pull for one another, and get along well. Their attitudes have been good, they hustle, and that makes all the difference in the world when you play together as a team.” Spartanburg added four more runs onto their lead in the fourth on four hits, with the big one being an Adams Faucett two-RBI double, for a 7-2 advantage headed to the bottom of the sixth. Lance Moon opened the home half of the frame with a double to right field and came around to score on a Harrison Childers RBI single. Childers advanced to third on a wild pitch and stolen base, respectively before he touched home plate on a Selepes base hit. Mitchell later scored on a Lancaster RBI single, which trimmed the Spartanburg lead to 7-5. “This team doesn’t give up,” said Childers, who went 4-for-4 at the plate with one RBI and two runs scored. “We just kept fighting the entire time. This was really great for this team and really good for our confidence. (The mentality is) keep working hard and it’ll pay off.” Riley McDonald retired the side in order on two strikeouts and a groundout during the top of the seventh to set up the dramatic finish. Three Inman batters – Moon, Childers, and Rylee Douglas – each tallied a one-out single in succession to load the bases. Mitchell sliced a single to shallow right-center field, which drove in Moon and cut the deficit to 7-6. Selepes then smacked a 1-0 offering to the infield, but a Mustang error allowed Douglas to score and give Inman the victory, capping off a string of six unanswered runs over the final two innings. ”We hit some baseballs hard early, but they were hit right at (Spartanburg),” Skinner said. “We never quit - we just kept battling. I thought if we could get back to the top of the batting order, we’d have a chance.” Inman (6-2) will have a quick turnaround as they host Buffalo Post 87 on Friday, June 24th at 7 PM, which will complete a four-game homestand for Post 45. Spartanburg (5-2) will return to action on Monday, June 27th, when they will travel to face Gaffney Post 109. -Justin Mathis CHESNEE, SC- The Chesnee Post 48 softball team split a doubleheader against Cowpens Post 125 as they won the first game and dropped the second game on Tuesday night.
Chesnee Post 48 took game one by a score of 9-1 as Sam Carver pitched a four hit, one run complete game while striking out six batters over five innings of work. "When Sam was here during high school she was special,” said Chesnee Post 48 head coach Ashley Westbrooks. “It's great to have her back out here helping us this summer." Carver quickly helped herself at the plate as both she and Ali Scruggs gave Chesnee an early 2-0 lead to work with thanks to a pair of RBI singles. Madison House led the Post 125 response with a solo homerun to cut the lead in half but that’s as close as Cowpens would get as the homer was the lone run allowed by Carver on Tuesday. Harley Grady helped Post 48 regain a two run advantage with a RBI single in the bottom of the third inning before Post 48 busted the game open in the bottom of the third inning, as they scored six runs. Sam Carver, Ali Scruggs, and Harley Grady each collected their second RBIs of the game while Paige Scruggs added a RBI of her own. Post 48 also score a pair of runs thanks to a couple of Cowpens errors. Game two had a different feeling as Cowpens Post 125 took the 6-4 victory over Chesnee in the nightcap. A three run first inning proved to be pivotal as Emily Winstead and Josie Brown each hit RBI singles and Mahala Rice drew a bases loaded walk. Brown picked up another RBI in the third while Lily Keller pushed Post 125's lead to 6-0 after two and a half innings of play. Post 48 cut the lead in half during the bottom half of the third inning as Olivia Hall, Mikayla Cannon, and Kyndall Brill each hit RBI singles to make it 6-3. Chesnee tried to rally once again in the fifth inning thanks to a solo homerun by Olivia Hall but that would be all the runs they’d be able to get and the comeback fell short. Chesnee Post 48 will be back in action on Thursday as they travel to Buffalo to play Post 87 with a 6:00 PM scheduled first pitch. INMAN, S.C. – After being dealt their first loss over the weekend, Inman Post 45 returned to Jim Everhart Field for the first of a four game homestand on Monday night against Buffalo Post 87.
It was a good night at the dish for the home side, as Post 45 powered their way to a 20-4 victory over Buffalo in five innings. Post 87 opened the game by striking for three runs in the top of the first on two hits, along with two wild pitches. Inman had quite the responses in their first turn at the plate. Inman’s Grayson Selepes led off with a bunt single along the third base side and advanced to third on a throwing error. Jimmy Rosengrant drilled a double to the right-center field wall, which drove in Selepes and cut the Buffalo lead to 3-1. In total, Post 45 sent 12 men up to the dish and tallied eight runs during the frame. Rosengrant finished the game 4-for-5 with two doubles and seven runs batted in. Later in the fourth inning, Inman added on five runs to their advantage, including a Riley McDonald pinch-hit, two-run double to left field. On the mound for Post 45, Carter Sloand (three and one-third innings) and Jonah Rollins (one and two-thirds) combined to hold Post 87 to four runs during the game. “We hit the ball pretty well tonight,” said Inman head coach Steve Skinner. “When we gave up three quick runs in the first (inning), I was a little concerned there, but we settled down. It feels good (to win) with three more games coming up this week (Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday).” Inman (5-1) will turn around and host Gaffney Post 109 on Tuesday, June 21st at 7:00 PM. -Justin Mathis CHESNEE, SC - Buffalo Post 87 swept Chesnee Post 48 on Monday night in a doubleheader by the scores of 8-3 in game one and 11-0 in game two. The victory keeps Buffalo undefeated and snaps Chesnee’s three game winning streak.
Buffalo’s Abby Benfield won both games as she pitched a pair of complete games including a shutout in game two. Ayden Burgess led Post 87 with three RBIs while Halleigh Luke had three hits in game one. Katie Faith Watson had a RBI single for Chesnee Post 48 while Mattie Martin hit a solo homerun and collected another RBI for Post 48. Caroline Davis collected three hits and three RBIs in game two for Post 87 while they also got two RBIs from Sky Young. Chesnee Post 48 will return to action on Tuesday at home as they host Cowpens Post 125 with a 6:00 PM scheduled first pitch for the first of two games. American Legion Softball North Standings (as of June 17, 2022) Northern Division-1 Buffalo 4-0 Inman 4-4 Chesnee 3-3 Cowpens 1-5 Northern Division-2 Greenwood 8-0 Abbeville 4-0 Mid-Carolina 1-5 Aiken 0-4 Ridge Springs 0-6 SPARTANBURG, S.C. – For the second time this season, Inman Post 45 and the Spartanburg Post 28 Mustangs battled at Historic Duncan Park as both clubs closed in on the midway point of the regular season.
On this night, the host Mustangs (3-1) used a big first inning to notch a 10-4 victory, handing Inman their first loss of the campaign. In the top of the first inning, Inman had runners on the corners with two outs after Grayson Selepes and Gabe Rogers reached on an error and walk, respectively. However, Spartanburg picked up an inning-ending groundout to escape the jam. Post 28 struck for five runs on five hits during their first turn at bat, including a pair of RBI singles, one each from Adams Faucett and Braeden Harrison. “We had a pretty big inning the first time we played Inman,” recalled Spartanburg head coach Blake Burress. “We hit a home run and had a 2-0 lead, but then we gave them five runs right back. They took the lead and never relinquished it. We did a good job tonight of adding on (to the lead) and keeping them off-balance as much as we could.” Inman answered with two runs of their own in the second inning. Lance Moon drilled a one-out double down the left field line and two batters later, Jackson Kostivik smacked a double off the left field wall, plating Moon. Selepes then sent a single back up the box into center field, driving in Kostivik and cutting the Mustangs’ lead to 5-2. Trailing by five runs entering the third inning, Inman loaded the bases with one out on a Rogers walk, Jacob Murray double to right, and a fielder’s choice. Rogers scored on a Moon RBI fielder’s choice and Murray crossed home plate on a wild pitch, which made it a 7-4 deficit. Post 45 opened the fourth with consecutive singles by Kostivik and Selepes, but Post 28 tallied a strikeout and double play to end the frame. Spartanburg tacked on three runs in the bottom half of the inning, which proved to be the final margin. Jonah Rollins tossed a pair of scoreless innings in relief for Inman. Adam Stacy picked up the win on the mound for the Mustangs, while Adams Faucett earned the save. “(Spartanburg) got some hits and we struggled to throw strikes early on,” said Inman head coach Steve Skinner. “You have to give Spartanburg credit. They swung the bats well tonight. Sometimes, people just have to get your attention and I think Spartanburg got our attention tonight.” Inman (4-1) will now prepare for four games in five days next week, all of which will be played at Inman Mills Park, beginning on Monday, June 20th at 7 PM against Buffalo Post 87. Spartanburg will return home on Monday to face the Gaffney Post 109 Crusaders. -Justin Mathis COWPENS, SC - On a blistering hot afternoon the Inman Post 45 team was able to sweep a doubleheader over Cowpens Post 125 as one game was a low scoring affair before the bats erupted at Broome High School on Tuesday.
With the win Inman improves to 4-2 on the season as they've taken doubleheaders over both Cowpens and Chesnee with their only losses coming in a doubleheader to Buffalo Post 87 this past Thursday. "Our girls with the heat like it was today really worked together and pushed through to get the victories today," said Inman head coach Christina Cothran. "We won with small ball in that first game as everything I told the girls to do, they were executing perfectly. Our girls are starting to come together as a team and are now beginning to read off of each other." Inman grabbed a 2-0 victory over Cowpens in the first game as both scores came off wild pitches. Kennedy Woodruff, with two outs in the top of the second inning, reached base on a hit-by-pitch before stealing second base and reaching third base on an error before she gave Inman a 1-0 lead when she raced home on a wild pitch to Tori Earle. In the top of the third inning Inman got their second run of the game Elaina Deyoung reached base on a single to leftfield before advancing to second base on a groundout and advancing to third base on a sacrifice bunt by Emma Stott. Deyoung made the score 2-0 in favor of Post 45 when she scored on a wild pitch to Anslee Kibbe. Deyoung also had a great night on the mound for Inman as Cowpens had runners reach third base three separate times but each time she left the runners stranded while striking out three Cowpens batters. Deyoung's performance in the pitching circle along with the other Inman pitchers has helped Post 45 get off to a strong start to begin the season. "Elaina Deyoung is doing her part in the circle and just stepping up when we need her to each game," said Cothran. "She does what we ask her to each time she steps into that circle and all of our pitching is doing that overall. Elaina is stepping up big for us now just only pitching but at the plate as well." With the sun going down on Tuesday, the bats for both teams started to heat up but it was Inman that was able to come away with the 8-5 victory in the second game of the doubleheader. "We were talking in our postgame huddle that the second game is a prime example of what we need to do and jump ahead of teams early," said Cothran. "We need to get the hits when we need them and keep being consistent but our girls really stepped up big tonight." Inman got on the board early as they scored the first three runs of the game in the top of the first inning. Logan Woodruff led off with a walk before advancing to third base on a single to leftfield by Chloe Dunlap before making the game 1-0 on a sacrifice bunt by Zarria Smith. Dunlap advanced to second base on the sacrifice bunt before going to third base on a single to centerfield by Elaina Deyoung before scoring on a Cowpens error to put Inman up 2-0. Deyoung pushed the Post 45 lead to 3-0 when she scored on a Cowpens wild pitch. In the top of the second inning Inman added three more runs as Trey Hall led off with a single and was followed by Logan Kennedy who worked an eleven-pitch walk. Both runners advanced on a groundout before scoring on a double down the leftfield line by Chloe Dunlap to push the Inman lead to 5-0 over Cowpens. Dunlap later scored on a Cowpens error to make the Inman led 6-0 heading into the bottom of the second inning. Cowpens got their first run of the night in the bottom of the second inning when Madison House hit a single to right field. She advanced to second base on a groundout before going to third base on a wild pitch and scoring on a bunt to first base by Jayce Ruppe-Fowler to cut the Inman lead to 6-1 at the end of the second inning. Inman added a run in the top of the third inning as Trey Hall scored from third base on a single to leftfield by Logan Woodruff as Inman got their run back to push their lead to 7-1 over Cowpens. In the bottom of the third inning Madison House went back to work at the plate as she hit a triple to left centerfield that scored Emily Winstead, who had reached base on a single to rightfield, while House also scored as Inman had an error on the relay to cut the lead to 7-3 at the end of the third inning. Logan Kennedy added an insurance run for Post 45 in the top of the fifth inning as she reached base on a double down the leftfield line before scoring on a groundout by Dunlap to push the Inman lead to 8-3. Cowpens' Madison House wasn't ready for the game to end on Tuesday night as she crushed a two-run homer to right centerfield with two outs scoring both her and Winstead to cut the Inman lead to 8-5. House accounted, through either RBI or runs scored, for all five of the Cowpens runs in the second game on Tuesday night. Inman's Logan Woodruff pitched the second game for Post 45 as she picked up the win while striking out seven batters in five innings of play. Inman Post 45 will be back in action on Thursday when they host Chesnee at Chapman High School for the team's second matchup of the season while Cowpens Post 125 will host Buffalo Post 87 in their second matchup of the season at Broome High School. Inman's game is scheduled to begin at 7:00 PM on Thursday while Cowpens game will begin at 6:00 PM. CHESNEE, SC - On Tuesday afternoon history was set at the Chesnee High School softball field as Chesnee's Post 48 held their first ever American Legion Lady's Softball League games in the second season of South Carolina American Legion play.
Prior to the game Chesnee mayor Bruce Mahaffey read a proclamation declaring June 7th, 2022, Chesnee American Legion Softball Day in the town of Chesnee before throwing out of the ceremonial pitches by Mahaffey and the state director of the league Bob Scherer. The first pitch in Chesnee Post 48 history was thrown by former Chesnee pitcher Sam Carver as she struck out two of the first three batters she faced while sitting Inman Post 45 down in order. Carver also recorded the first hit in Chesnee Post 48's history when she singled to rightfield in the bottom of the first inning. While the day started out celebrating Chesnee Post 48's first games, it was Inman Post 45 that was celebrating after the games as they won 2-0 in the first game and 5-2 in the second half of the doubleheader. "Our team played very well today and really played together as a team," said Inman head coach Christina Cothran. "We have girls from all over the Upstate and with only one practice before the game tonight they done a great job of working as one, they each showed out in their own way tonight." Chesnee's Carver and Inman's Logan Woodruff battled in a pitching duel throughout the first game as Woodruff struck out nine batters in a complete game shutout and Carver struck out seven batters. "Logan came through big time for the team today," said Cothran. "She's aggressive and doesn't give up. When we need someone to step up, we know that she's someone we count on every time." The first runs of the game came in the top of the fourth inning when Chloe Dunlap singled to centerfield before advancing to second on a sacrifice bunt by Sydnee Spencer. Dunlap made the lead 1-0 when she scored on a Chesnee error that allowed Eliana Deyoung to reach base. Two more Chesnee errors later saw Deyoung also score and push the Inman lead to 2-0 going into the bottom of the fourth inning. After that point neither pitcher allowed another batter to reach base over the next inning and a half as Inman captured game one. In game two Inman took an early 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning when Eliana Deyoung, who had reached base on an error, scored on a Chesnee wild pitch. Mattie Martin set more Chesnee history in the bottom of the first inning when she hit a ball to the right field corner that allowed her to register an in-the-park homerun for the first run scored and homerun in Chesnee Post 48's history. Martin also scored the only other run for Chesnee in the bottom of the fifth inning. Inman broke the game open in the top of the third inning by scoring four straight runs but it could have been even more except for a great throw by Chesnee right fielder Harley Grady making a great throw from rightfield to third base to throw out the leadoff runner for Inman in the inning. On the play that saw the lead runner get thrown out Inman's Sydnee Spencer doubled to right field before she scored on a Chesnee error that allowed Taylor Woodruff to reach second base to give Inman a 2-1 lead. Woodruff pushed the lead to 3-1 when she scored on a double to rightfield Bryanna Crowe. Crowe and Treyanna Copeland, who had reached on a walk, both scored two batters later when Elizabeth Horn singled to right field to push Inman's lead to 5-1 over Chesnee. Inman's Eliana Deyoung picked up the win in the circle for Post 45 as she struck out four Chesnee batters in the second game. Both teams will be back in action on Thursday as Chesnee Post 48 travels to play Cowpens Post 125 at Broome High School in a doubleheader as Inman Post 45 will host Buffalo Post 87 at Chapman High School in another doubleheader. The first game of each matchup is scheduled to start at 6:00 PM. American Legion Baseball - Inman (Post 45) 10 Spartanburg (Post 28) 7 INMAN, SC - The second season of the South Carolina American Legion Lady Fastpitch Softball League will begin on June 7th as the league expands from ten teams last year to seventeen teams this season. The northern division will contain nine teams while the southern division will contain eight teams. The Inman Post 45 team will return this season to the league and will be joined by Cowpens Post 125 and Buffalo Post 87 as returning teams to the league, in one half of the Northern Division, while being joined in the division by Chesnee's Post 48 for their inaugural season. Chesnee will host their first ever American Legion softball game on June 7th against Inman Post 45 at 6:00 PM at Chesnee High School's softball field. While those four teams will control the top half of the Northern Division, the bottom half of the Northern Division will consist of Abbeville Post 02, Greenwood Post 20 (the defending state champions), Newberry Post 24, Aiken Post 26, and Ridge Springs Post 133. The Southern Division will consist of Columbia Post 06/215, Darlington Quad, Sumter Post 15, Camden Post 17, Bishopville Post 29, Holly Hill Post 116, and Irmo Post 174. The playoffs will begin the week of July 11th before the state championship game is held on July 18th at Patriot Park in Sumter, SC. There will also be an American Legion All-Star game tournament held on Wednesday, July 20th at Lander University, as a showcase event for college coaches to come see the best players in the league compete. On the baseball side of American Legion play, the Inman Post 45 team will return to play in League 6 where they'll play against Buffalo Post 87, Gaffney Post 109, and Spartanburg Post 28. Inman Post 45 will kick off their season on June 7th at Duncan Park against Spartanburg Post 28 at 7:00 PM before opening their home season the next night against Gaffney Post 109 at Inman Mills Park. On June 23rd Inman Post 45 will hold their 100th year recognition ceremony prior to their game against Spartanburg Post 28 at 7:00 PM. To keep up the American Legion Baseball schedule go to www.scalb.org. Click on the forms below to keep up with the American Legion Softball schedule and for addresses of the field locations.
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