Burrell builds momentum with win over Deer Lakes

By: Michael Love
Monday, April 15, 2024 | 9:50 PM

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Mother Nature’s rain overnight from Sunday into Monday necessitated a change in venue for Monday’s Section 1-3A softball clash for first place between rivals Burrell and Deer Lakes.

Originally an evening contest at Burrell’s Bon Air Elementary, it was relocated to Deer Lakes’ new artificial turf field for an afternoon first pitch.

The change of scenery didn’t have an effect on Burrell’s plans for victory.

The Bucs scored a run in the third and added three key runs in the fifth before holding off a Lancers rally in the bottom of the seventh for a 4-2 win.

“It was another strong team effort,” Burrell coach Dave Ferres said. “The girls know that all these pitchers are good and that they’re in for a battle. The girls still carried that win against Freeport from last week. This was for first place, and they came in with a lot of momentum.”

Burrell, which also topped Freeport, 3-1, last Wednesday at Bon Air, won for the fifth straight time since a 3-1 nonsection loss to Ligonier Valley on March 26 and improved to 6-2 overall and 4-0 in the section

The Bucs close out the first half of section play Wednesday at defending section champion Avonworth.

Deer Lakes also was seeking its fifth straight win.

The same night Burrell beat Freeport, the Lancers got the better of Avonworth, 5-2.

Deer Lakes hopes to bounce back Friday as it opens the second half of section play at Freeport. The Lancers won the first meeting, 3-1, on April 5.

“There’s a lot of games left to be played, and we’ll get Burrell again in a couple of weeks,” Deer Lakes coach Rick Cerra said. “The second half (of section play) starts Friday, and the girls will be ready to play Freeport.”

Both teams finished with five hits. Bucs center fielder Tina Gural had one of the biggest hits of the game with a clutch single to right field with two outs and two on in the top of the fifth off of Lancers ace Maddie Kee to score courtesy runner Leah Waldsmith and shortstop Pyper Ferres.

“I had struck out against (Kee) in my first at-bat, but I got her rhythm down, and I was able to rip it and get some runs in for my team,” Gural said.

Ferres got the scoring started in the inning with a double to plate Jenna Morrison, who had walked to lead off the frame.

Bella Stewart followed with a double to put runners on second and third and set the table for Gural.

Sabrina Hoover and Brae Jones added doubles for Burrell, and Jones’ hit drove in the Bucs’ run in the third.

“We knew we had to get that one run first, and that was a big momentum shift,” coach Ferres said. “It gave the girls confidence to where they were able to add on a couple innings later. It’s never enough in games like these.”

Despite the four-run deficit in the seventh, Deer Lakes didn’t fold its tent against Burrell freshman starter Shelby Novak.

Haley Friess drew a one-out walk, and Ella Thomas followed with a single to runners on first and second.

Lilly Livingston then singled to left to load the bases.

The Lancers got on the board as Gracie Spagnolo grounded into a fielder’s choice to short. The play allowed both Friess and Thomas to score.

Laney Dineff singled to put runners on first and second and bring Sophia Laurenza up with a chance to tie the game or give Deer Lakes the win.

But Novak got Laurenza to ground out to third to end the rally and the game.

Novak finished with three strikeouts and one walk over seven innings.

“The win against Freeport was a nice confidence booster for me and my teammates,” Novak said. “It helped me with my pitch selection against Deer Lakes. They have a really strong lineup. The defense behind me helped a lot with making a lot of nice plays. We have been working really hard on defense and also at the plate. It was a nice win for us.”

Kee also went the distance and struck out 11 Bucs batters while surrendering three walks.

“We expected Burrell to come in here and give us their best game,” Cerra said. “They’ve played well so far this year, and we expected a good game. We really didn’t start getting on base and moving runners until the seventh. Burrell is a well-coached team, and they hit the ball hard. They also made some fantastic defensive plays.

“The girls have too much pride in themselves to give up on a game. That is their character, and it is the history of the program. They battled back and gave themselves a chance. It just wasn’t enough there at the end.”

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: Burrell, Deer Lakes