SULPHUR SPRINGS, Texas-Hughes Springs punched its ticket to the regional finals for a chance to defend its title.
The Lady Mustangs posted their fourth playoff run-rule victory, jumped on Pilot Point early and eliminated the Lady Bearcats, 14-2, in the Region II-3A semifinals Saturday at Sulphur Springs' Lady Cat Field.
Hughes Springs (28-3) will play New Boston (23-8) for the regional championship next week with a berth to the 3A state softball tournament on the line. Pilot Point ends its year at 31-7-1.
The Mustangs and Lady Lions will meet in a single game at 7:30 p.m. Thursday at Northeast Texas Community College in Mount Pleasant.
"You could tell Pilot Point was young," Hughes Springs coach Tisha Thompson said. "Nothing bad about their pitcher; she did a good job. We're just fortunate to have a lineup full of kids who can hit."
Madison Kennedy earned the win for the Mustangs, scattering six hit with three strikeouts and a walk, throwing 62 pitches.
Sophomore Christine Billmeier took the loss, throwing 123 pitches in five innings. She struck out eight and walked five.
A leadoff walk in the second to Abbye McKinney started a big inning for the Mustangs. Kennedy put down a bunt for an infield hit, and another bunt by Pearl Perry was overthrown at third, attempting to get McKinney, and allowed her to score to make it 2-0.
Kensley Echols' groundout to second drove in a run, and Charlie Reeves singled hard up the middle to drive in Perry And bring up the top of the lineup.
Peyton Blythe grounded a hit to left, and Kennedi Northam's soft liner to left loaded the bases. After a pop up for an infield fly and the second out, Shelbie Fickling walked on four pitches to force home the fourth run of the inning.
Blythe worked a 4-pitch walk to start the game, stole second on the first pitch to Northam and advanced to third on a wild pitch. Northam put down a bunt for a safety squeeze, Blythe scoring on the throw to first.
The third-inning rally had three hits and two errors.
Perry singled to left with one out, and Reeves walked with two outs. Blythe also walked to load the bases, and Northam grounded an RBI hit to left. An error on Haylee Wilson's line drive to right field cleared the bases, extending Hughes Springs' lead to 9-0.
Fickling's single plated Wilson. Another error kept the inning going before a groundout to second stranded a pair of runners in scoring position.
Billmeier struck out the side in the fourth inning, the first frame the Mustangs didn't have a baserunner or score a run.
An error allowed Pilot Point's leadoff batter to reach second in the bottom of the first, but a line drive off the bat of Billmeier was snagged by Mustang third baseman Kensley Echols, who threw to second in time to double off the runner.
A 2-out error in the third was just the second baserunner Hughes Springs allowed, but Kenedee Gist lined a single to left to break up the no-hit bid.
In the bottom of the fourth, Billmeier singled to center, and Bailey Stewart doubled to left-center field. Billmeier scored on a groundout, and Paige Cox delivered a 2-out, infield hit sandwiched around strikeouts.
Cox's hit was overthrown at first for an error, scoring the second run of the inning for the Bearcats.
The Mustangs put it back in run-rule parameters with a 4-run fifth. Singles by Northam, Wilson and Kennedy, and doubles by McKinney and Fickling accounted for the runs. Fickling drove in a pair on her stand-up double, and McKinney plated a run. Kennedy's single also drive in a run.
"You have to give credit to every one of our kids; they do whatever they have to do to help us win as a team," Thompson said. "If I tell them to bunt, they're going to put the bunt down. If I tell them I need a ground ball, they're going to hit a ground ball.
"The fact that they're such team players accounts for the amount of runs they put up."
Northam was 3 for 3 with two RBI for Hughes Springs, Fickling was 2 for 3 with a double and four RBI, and Kennedy was 2 for 4.
Billmeier had two singles for the Bearcats.
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Hughes Springs=145=04==-=14=12=3
Pilot Point=000=20==-=2=6=3
Game called after 5 innings, 10-run rule.
Marisol Kennedy and Kennedi Northam. Christine Billmeier and Kenedee Gist. WP-Kennedy. LP-Billmeier.