MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent South Williamsport team mates celebrate their 11-1 win over Troy for the District championship at Elm Park Tuesday.

When South Williamsport coaches and athletic director Brett Herbst constructed a loaded 2025 softball schedule filled with outstanding opponents, the players offered a quick response.

Bring it on.

A year after reaching the Class AA state championship, South welcomed all the challenges coming their way. Yes, the Mounties understood they might lose some games, but they always kept the big picture in mind. It was all about seeing the best teams possible so they could be playing their best when the playoffs came around again.

So far, so good. South navigated all those obstacles and made it four straight district championships last Tuesday, routing Troy, 11-1 in six innings. The Mounties (14-5) face their next excellent opponent Monday when they play District 2 champion Holy Redeemer in the state tournament’s first round.

“It prepared us very well. Playing those hard games is good coming into the playoffs because you’ve faced those good teams where when you’re playing those (regular season) games it already feels like a playoff even though it’s just in the season,” catcher Lily Reidy said after going 2 for 4 with four RBIs against Troy. “You face great pitchers, great hitters, people who are going to make the plays and it just gets you prepared for that playoff season.”

That showed in two district playoff games as South outscored Wyalusing and Troy, 21-1. Those results were partly thanks to how many times South was tested during the regular season. The Mounties played 17 regular season games and just once against a team with a losing record.

So good was the schedule that South opponents compiled a whopping .677 winning percentage. The next closest District 4 team in terms of that percentage was 6A Williamsport at .553.

“We barely played any 2A or single A teams. It really helped us because those are really good teams we played,” pitcher Alizabeth Schuler said after throwing a seven-hitter in the final and going 3 for 3. “(Coach) Tom (O’Malley) at the beginning of the season said we’re going to stack our schedule. He said we know we’re going to lose some games but we can’t be too upset. We just want to do this for the long run.”

South immediately found out how hard that schedule would be, opening its season with five games at the Myrtle Beach Tournament. There, the Mounties played mostly 6A and 5A teams, but shined, tying for first and going 4-1.

From there, South constantly challenged itself against some of the top squads from District 4, 2 and 6, including Mifflinburg (twice), District 4 Class AAAA champion Athens (21-1), District 2 Class AAAAA runner-up Abington Heights (19-3) and District 6 power Bald Eagle Area (19-3). The Mounties were scheduled to play Holy Redeemer as well, but that game was canceled after the Mounties had made the trip there on a soggy Friday afternoon.

“I think we’re seeing the benefit of that now. That was our goal to play as many tough teams as possible,” O’Malley said. “Sometimes you have your ups and downs but this is the time of year you have to be at your best because every little things matters.”

And South did travel a winding road at times. It lost some heart-breakers, including two games in extra innings and 1-0 against BEA. For a group as competitive as this one, those losses stung but South did not grow discouraged.

The Mounties understood those games were a means to an end. South realized it would not help if it played lesser opponents who did not challenge it. Better to play terrific teams on a regular basis. Iron sharpens iron and, although South wanted to win every game, it moved forward knowing that it had bigger goals in mind.

“Facing some of the best pitching in the state, some of the best batters in the state it did more than prepare us for playoffs,” shortstop Gianna Goodman said after going 2 for 3 with two runs. “We always say that everything matters more in the playoffs. I think we’re a lot more focused on little details now.”

That shined through in the final. Every starter reached base, the defense made no errors and South stormed out to a 7-0 start against another strong opponent.

Troy players dubbed themselves “The Dream Team,” during the preseason. Their dream turned into nightmare again, however, as South easily dispatched it, ending its season for a third straight year. South closed it it early as Reidy hit a two-run, sixth-inning, walk-off double.

That capped an undefeated four year-run for seven seniors who captured four district championships and went 10-0 in those games.

“It’s a huge accomplishment. We put our minds to it since Day 1,” Reidy said. “You always want to make it there, you always want to come out with Gold and to be able to accomplish that, it feels really good. We look at this and we use this to try and push us forward to get back to where we were last year.”

That has been the goal all season and that was the purpose of building such a daunting schedule. Nothing comes easy in the playoffs, but South is used to that because nothing has come easy its entire year.

South did not enter the playoffs with a gaudy a record as it did last season but that is because it tested itself so much more. Another test beckons now, as Holy Redeemer awaits. Time will tell how that game goes, but South certainly enters knowing it has prepared itself as well as it possibly can.

And others potentially underestimating it, gives South some added fuel.

“Even though we have some losses they don’t show how good of a team they are. Some look at the record and don’t think we’re as good we are,” Schuler said. “Even though we have those losses we know we still show up and show out.”