2024 WPIAL Class 2A softball championship preview: Neshannock vs. Bentworth

By: Michael Love
Wednesday, May 29, 2024 | 5:31 PM

2024 WPIAL Class 2A softball championship

No. 1 Neshannock (21-0) vs. No. 2 Bentworth (17-2)

Noon Thursday at Cal (Pa.)’s Lilley Field

How they got here: Neshannock defeated No. 9 Riverside, 11-1, in the quarterfinals; and No. 5 Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, 5-0, in the semifinals. Bentworth defeated No. 7 Shenango, 8-1, in the quarterfinals; and No. 3 Laurel, 2-1, in the semifinals.

WPIAL titles: Neshannock 4 (2013, ‘14, ‘22, ‘23); Bentworth 0

Coaches: Jackie Lash, Neshannock; Jack Cramer, Bentworth

Players to watch: Jaidon Nogay, Neshannock; Willow Eckels, Bentworth

Extra bases: Neshannock seeks a three-peat and experience to make it happen. The Lancers are fronted by junior pitcher Addy Frye, along with six other starters who took part in last year’s WPIAL title win. Neshannock entered the playoffs as the only undefeated team in Class 2A, and the Lancers have rolled, winning their two games by a combined 16-1. Against OLSH in the WPIAL semifinals, Frye was dominant as she threw 95 pitches, allowed just one hit and one walk, and struck out 14. Offensively, Neshannock collected nine hits. Junior Miley Anderson was 2 for 4 with a home run and two runs batted in, while Nogay, a sophomore, went 2 for 3 with a double and a triple. Junior Gabby Quinn also collected two hits, one a double and drove in a run. Frye leads the team with a .528 average (28 of 53) while she and Quinn top the lineup in RBIs with 29 apiece. Lancers hitters have combined for 78 extra base hits: 48 doubles, 10 triples and 20 home runs. Neshannock is averaging 10.1 runs a game. … Bentworth hopes to limit the Lancers’ potent offense as it seeks its first WPIAL championship. The Bearcats have gotten the job done this season with a limited roster of just 10 players. Bentworth is in the championship game after going 6-9 overall in 2023. The Bearcats made last year’s WPIAL tournament as the No. 12 seed but fell to No. 5 Greensburg Central Catholic, 10-0. The Bearcats limited a potent Laurel offensive attack to just one run in their semifinal victory. The Spartans came into the game averaging nine runs a game. Sophia Gaussa was the hero for Bentworth as her two-run double in the bottom of the seventh helped the Bearcats rally for the win. Bentworth ace Sydney Gonglik fired a complete game and gave up five hits, two walks and the one earned run while striking out 14. The Bearcats captured the Section 3 title with a 12-0 record and are averaging 9.5 runs a game.

Michael Love is a TribLive reporter covering sports in the Alle-Kiski Valley and the eastern suburbs of Pittsburgh. A Clearfield native and a graduate of Westminster (Pa.), he joined the Trib in 2002 after spending five years at the Clearfield Progress. He can be reached at mlove@triblive.com.

Tags: Bentworth, Neshannock