High School Softball: Power rankings for Chillicothe-area teams after Week 5

CHILLICOTHE — Even as the final stretch of the high school softball season approaches, there's little slowing down teams around the area.

Piketon and Westfall, two of the most emergent teams in the back half of the year, fought down to the wire Wednesday in a bout for control of third place in the Scioto Valley Conference. Chillicothe has won four straight. Unioto tied an OHSAA record for home runs in a game over the weekend. Playoffs approach, and the chances for conference titles are still on the line.

Another week is in the books, and its time to see how every area teams stacks up against one another. Here are the latest edition of power rankings for all 10 Chillicothe-area softball teams following the fifth week of the season:

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10. Paint Valley Bearcats (2-18, 1-10 Scioto Valley Conference)

Another hard week for the Bearcats, but they managed to keep it close in losses to Washington and Westfall on Saturday and Monday, respectively. Westfall has been on a tear, so the Bearcats keeping it close is a win in and of itself.

9. Southeastern Panthers (3-17, 1-10 Scioto Valley Conference)

Small victories where they come, Southeastern gave Zane Trace a scare on Monday and nearly snatched the second game of their doubleheader with Eastern on Saturday. Jessie Higley and Jozy Lougheed have been commanding the batting order, and the runs are coming despite the losses.

8. Waverly Tigers (7-11, 1-7 Southern Ohio Conference III)

The SOC III is no joke this year, and Waverly's had to contend with that fact all year. Three straight losses to Valley and Wheelersburg, two of the top three teams in the conference, only add to that struggle. Waverly has gotten a pair of wins over Western and Warren over the weekend, however.

7. Zane Trace Pioneers (7-8, 5-6 Scioto Valley Conference)

Aside from trading losses with Huntington and a loss to Adena last week, the Pioneers are holding steady late in the year. They've won confidently when lined up against most other SVC teams, and give a solid fight against most other heavy-hitters on their schedule. Their 12-3 win over the Huntsmen last Friday was perhaps the best example of this, with six batters getting at least two hits and runs scoring on the regular.

6. Huntington Huntsmen (11-9, 4-7 Scioto Valley Conference)

If there's one bright side to the past week for the Huntsmen, it's their ability to get runs on the board. In three of their last five games, they've scored 10 runs or more. Granted, so did their opponents in two of those games, but the loss to Westfall was back-and-forth for much of the game. If the Huntsmen can manage to contain opposing offenses, they'll be able to lock down the next week of their schedule.

5. Chillicothe Cavaliers (10-7, 5-3 Frontier Athletic Conference)

Outside of the SVC, the Cavaliers have got to be the area team with the most traction. Sure, that 8-2 loss to Notre Dame hurts, but its an easy trade after winning the next four games — a doubleheader with Pickerington North and Bishop Ready, and a home-and-home with McClain — by a 41-12 margin. This is not the same team from three weeks ago. The Cavaliers have very much come into their own.

4. Westfall Mustangs (5-9, 5-5 Scioto Valley Conference)

The Mustangs were so, so close. Their six-run fifth inning against Piketon on Wednesday night almost swung their conference bout their way. Adrina Hicks and Sydney Fuller both came up huge at the plate, and it seemed the Mustangs had some serious momentum heading into the bottom of the fifth inning. Tough loss, but the Mustangs showed plenty of promise on Wednesday.

3. Piketon Redstreaks (11-7, 6-4 Scioto Valley Conference)

In a battle between two teams on the rise late in the season, Piketon emerged Wednesday as the top dog over Westfall in one of the most contentious games this late in the SVC race. Piketon hit hard, got ahead early, and shut down a potential rally to stick the landing. Wednesday was another good night for Paige Helton as well, as she pitched another complete game.

2. Adena Warriors (15-3, 8-1 Scioto Valley Conference)

The Warriors largely put their loss to Unioto last Monday behind them and haven't lost a game since. Sure, there was a bit of a scare against Huntington this week, but the Warriors rallied to score seven runs in the sixth inning and flip a potential loss into another conference win. Close calls don't make for losses, and the Warriors aren't going to take any SVC opponents lying down.

1. Unioto Shermans (14-3, 10-0 Scioto Valley Conference)

It's hard to stack up with the week the Shermans have had, including their monstrous 37-1 win over Washington this past Saturday. Prevailing wisdom tells that the Shermans are bound to go yard on any given night. That's part of their success. Slugging has fueled their considerable run differential this year, and those nine home runs they hit on Saturday proved why.

This article originally appeared on Chillicothe Gazette: High School Softball: Week 5 power rankings for Chillicothe-area teams