Knoch softball team starts 9-0 in section

By: Michael Love
Friday, April 25, 2025 | 7:34 PM

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Last year, the Knoch softball team went 10-2 in section play.

Their only two losses were to undefeated champion Indiana by scores of 2-0 and 7-0.

Senior Grace Hensch said she and the other returning players kept those games in mind because of what the losses meant to their section title aspirations.

Now, a year later, the shoe is on the other foot, and the Knights, with a mix of veteran talent and those who have stepped up into new varsity roles, are one step away from bringing home a section crown.

Hensch said Thursday’s 4-0 win over Indiana at Laura Doerr Memorial Park was special because it kept the Knights undefeated in Section 1-4A at 9-0 but it also completed a season sweep of the Indians.

“With Indiana, it is a little bit personal for us from what they did to us last year, especially on our home field,” said Hensch, whose bases-clearing double in the second inning proved to be a big difference maker for a Knoch team that scored its eighth shutout of the season.

“We came into the season focused on taking the section back, and (Thursday) felt good with what we still have in front of us.”

In front of the Knights is Monday’s chance to clinch the section title at Highlands.

Knoch’s win Thursday also was its 12th in a row overall since a season-opening 8-7 loss to Plum on March 19. The Knights have outscored section opponents 97-4 in their nine games.

Hench said she was grateful for the opportunity to step up and get a big hit, but she knows that everyone in the lineup and those coming off the bench can step up and deliver when needed.

Six players Thursday accounted for the team’s seven hits.

“This team is one of the most consistent I’ve seen from the plate,” she said. “We’ve all come up clutch in our own special ways in different games. It’s not just one person or just nine players. It’s the whole team collectively. We’ve had that mindset from even before the season started, and it’s paying off.”

Senior Marlee Fraser followed Hensch’s big moment with a run-scoring single in the second to extend the lead.

Junior center fielder Liz Danik led the Knights offense with a pair of singles. Freshman shortstop Emersyn Jones, sophomore pitcher Kaila Purcell and senior left fielder Carissa Tekely collected hits in the victory.

“It is awesome to know that we are so close to another section title and have a chance to go far in the playoffs,” Tekely said. “A couple of us play travel ball together in the summer, and we were around each other quite a bit. Every single time we saw each other, we would talk about this (spring) being our season, and we would hype each other up.

“I and the others on this team feel very accomplished. Being able to help lead it with Grace and (senior first baseman) Brooke (Bastin) as captains is an amazing feeling. I am proud of all the things we have built here at Knoch and continue to build. We are happy with where we are in the season, but there is still more work to do.”

Knoch coach Chris Gardner said defense again rose to the occasion Thursday.

“I saw more plays made in that game than I’ve seen in years by our middle infielders,” Gardner said of Jones and junior second baseman Lindsay Wise.

“They just played phenomenal, and it’s that way all around the diamond and in the outfield. The defense starts in the circle with our two pitchers, Marlee and Kaila. We’ve been rotating them in and out. The defense behind them has been stellar. We only have three errors all year from the middle infielders. We’re pitching well and playing good defense.”

Purcell got the call against Indiana and gave up just two hits and no walks while striking out two in the complete-game triumph.

Fraser and Purcell were on point April 17 in a doubleheader sweep of second-place Derry.

“Pitch calling is a little bit different with each of them knowing what they throw, but in regards to their talents and how they perform, it is no different,” Hensch said.

“They are both high-caliber pitchers who are so focused when they are in the circle. It’s a lot of fun.”

Jones has emerged as the leader at the plate. She’s hitting .650 for the season with seven home runs, 27 RBIs and 21 runs scored.

“We didn’t even know if we had a shortstop coming into the season,” Gardner said. “Then we watched her, and we said, ‘Oh, we found our shortstop.’ She sometimes doesn’t realize it, but hitting is contagious, and the rest of the girls are following her lead and are having some of their best years with the bat.

“When she came in, the jump to varsity softball didn’t faze her. She was cool as a cucumber. If you watch her play and her mannerisms, it’s like she’s been doing it forever. She has been doing it for a long time, but the change to the bright lights of varsity didn’t affect her at all.”

Knoch’s come-from-behind 15-14 win over North Catholic on April 7 was the start of seven games in 10 days.

Starting Monday at Highlands, the Knights will play four games in as many days. Knoch wraps up section play Tuesday at Valley and Wednesday at home with Greensburg-Salem.

The Knights host former section rival Burrell on Thursday.

“I knew we were going to have the chance to be good with how we did last year, who we had coming back and what we had coming up,” Gardner said.

“Every game and every practice, top to bottom, everybody on that team has a purpose and a role to play. There is no drama on this team. There is just that desire to work together to be the best. They love each other. It is just a special group of girls.”

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.

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