Eight-run inning helps South Johnston softball outscore West Johnston

South Johnston capitalized on an eight-run fourth inning, knocking off county rival West Johnston 10-8 in a non-conference softball game on a chilly Tuesday night.

Both teams are 2-2, all in non-conference action.

Mary Ann Brown (2-2) was the winning pitcher for the Trojans, while southpaw Tatum Brummitt took the loss in her first decision for the Wildcats.

Megan Mills pitched the last three innings for West, facing the minimum and striking out four without a walk.

“We have a group of go-getters,” South coach Amanda Smith said. “Things are going to happen and you’re going to make mistakes, but you have to bounce back every single play. And I think that’s what we did. When we made back-to-back errors we still stepped up and did what we had to do.”

Turning point

With the Wildcats leading 4-2, South sent 11 batters to the plate and scored eight runs in the fourth inning. Mack Honeycutt had a two-run single in the spree while Maura Mangum walked and singled.

They said it

“We’ve got our toughest competition right at the beginning, when we play other teams from Johnson County,” said West coach Laura Jefferson. “South is a great team. We hadn’t made a lot of errors before tonight, and we started a few people at different positions. We should have scored more than eight runs.”

Three to watch

Kandis Adams, South Johnston: The freshman second baseman went 4-for-4 with a run scored and an RBI.

“I was paying attention,” Adams said. “I went up there with a positive attitude, and I knew I wasn’t going to strike out. I told myself that every at-bat.”

Mary Ann Brown, South Johnston: The junior right-hander pitched a complete-game victory.

“I think I did pretty well tonight,” Brown said. “I was hitting my spots better than I usually do. We had some errors, but I know my team will back me up like they usually do.”

Megan Mills, West Johnston: The senior right-hander faced only nine batters in three innings and got a double in the sixth inning.

“I’m used to starting,” Mills said. “It was different to come in in relief. But Tatum had done a good job pitching. I feel like playing our county rivals prepares us very well for our conference. When we get to conference play, we’re already ‘there.’”

By the numbers

3: West Johnston innings with two or more runs.

8: Errors in the game, five of them by South.

9: Hits for West Johnston.

14: Hits for South Johnston.

This story was originally published March 9, 2016 at 11:44 AM with the headline "Eight-run inning helps South Johnston softball outscore West Johnston."