Hot start no surprise for Southmoreland softball team, which has big expectations

By: Bill Beckner Jr.
Wednesday, April 3, 2024 | 5:29 PM

When he heard one of his games was moved because of a schedule change related to Monday’s solar eclipse, Todd Bunner was surprised.

When the Southmoreland softball coach looked at his team’s statistics through five games, he wasn’t so surprised.

His team is casting quite a shadow over its opponents.

“When I say I am not surprised, it’s not being cocky,” Bunner said. “With the team we have and the girls we have back, there are a lot of expectations. Our girls go into every game expecting to win.”

Southmoreland is 5-0 and has yet to allow a run, outscoring teams 52-0. Four games have been stopped by the 10-run rule.

“We want to win it all,” senior shortstop Amarah McCutcheon said. “We have done more than I thought (so far), but, at the same time, we expected it.”

The Scotties, who were the WPIAL Class 3A runner-up last season, lost only one senior, so experience is bubbling over and there are few situations the team hasn’t seen.

A confluence of factors has the team mapping out a long, fun ride of a season.

“We’re more specialized with things, than overall things,” said junior second baseman Riley Puckey, who is hitting .583 with three extra-base hits and five RBIs. “We prepare for a pitcher if she pitches a certain way, or we work on defensive drills. Defense wins games.”

The Scotties, ranked No. 2 in WPIAL Class 3A, have 50 hits and have committed just two errors.

“Our preparation helps us,” said McCutcheon, a Cal (Pa.) commit who is hitting .610 with three home runs and 10 RBIs. “We help each other out. And when we win, we put that game behind us and move ahead.”

Senior pitcher Maddie Brown is a key cog in a lineup that can send baserunners through turnstiles. But she has come into her own in the circle, where she is 5-0 with a 0.00 ERA, 31 strikeouts and three walks.

“Maddie Brown has been a bulldog,” Bunner said. “She pitched in pouring rain against Latrobe and was tremendous. She helps us score a run, too.”

Eight seniors on the team played as freshmen.

“Six or seven of them started,” Bunner said. “They are talented kids, and they’ve all gotten better. Our juniors also played right away. There is a lot of WPIAL and PIAA playoff experience with this group.

“There is no drama with this team. These girls aren’t all best friends, but they get along like best friends.”

The real tester for the Scotties came against Latrobe, a perennial playoff team in Class 5A. Southmoreland scratched out a run in the first inning, then held back the Wildcats, despite getting out-hit 4-2.

“We did what we had to do in that game,” Bunner said. “We scored without a hit.”

Brown edged out Latrobe ace Kayla Williams, a Slippery Rock commit, for the win.

Brown and McCutcheon homered as the Scotties opened the season with a 10-0 win over 5A Penn-Trafford, perhaps a precursor to how good the team can be.

Asked if his team has any weak links or missing pieces, Bunner said, “Not really. We have to stay healthy. I wouldn’t say it’s championship or nothing, but we want to get to the WPIAL playoffs and do well and get to the PIAA playoffs and do well.”

Southmoreland’s volleyball team also had a big season in the fall, starting 3-0 before falling in the WPIAL quarterfinals to Avonworth.

Most of that team also plays softball.

“Like 90%,” McCutcheon said.

Senior Kaylee Doppleheuer is headed to Bethany to play volleyball, but she and McCutcheon are not the only college-bound athletes on the roster. Brown is going to Denison, where she might walk on, and senior Gabriella Grabiak is headed to Pitt-Greensburg.

The Scotties could be on a collision course to see Avonworth in the softball finals again. The two-time defending champion Antelopes are ranked No. 1 in 3A.

Avonworth, which has three district titles in four seasons, has beaten Southmoreland four straight times in the playoffs.

“We’re not going to back down,” Puckey said.

Bill Beckner Jr. is a TribLive reporter covering local sports in Westmoreland County. He can be reached at bbeckner@triblive.com.

Tags: Southmoreland