Penn-Trafford playoff run wakes up the echoes of 2019 state championship team

By: Bill Beckner Jr.
Thursday, June 12, 2025 | 11:01 AM

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Former Penn-Trafford outfielder Brooke Cleland recalls catching the final out at Beard Field and squeezing her glove around the softball.

It was like time stopped for a millisecond.

Then, in a rush of emotion and noise unlike anything she and her teammates had ever experienced, it became official: The Warriors were state champions.

They held on for a 5-3 win over Lampeter-Strasburg at Penn State.

“I will remember that for the rest of my life,” Cleland said of the final putout of the 2019 PIAA Class 5A softball championship. “The state title run was nothing short of incredible. I still think about it to this day. Our team was something special. Actually, this 2025 Warrior softball team reminds me of the 2019 team.”

Cleland, who recently finished her college career at Seton Hill, will be tuned in Friday when this year’s Warriors (23-3) take on Greencastle-Antrim (22-2) at 4 p.m. in the 5A title game at Nittany Lion Softball Park.

“I also remember the sendoff at the high school with all of our fans and having the opportunity as a high schooler to play at PSU at their great facilities,” Cleland said. “And, the escort back to Penn-Trafford after we won the gold.”

Cleland is right. There are similarities between the ’19 team and this one. For instance, that team also beat Central Mountain in the first round and defeated West Allegheny in the quarterfinals (instead of the semifinals).

Cleland hit two home runs against West Allegheny in a 6-2 victory. She, Emma Little and Emma Nedley all made defensive switches that season, with Cleland going from second base to center, Little moving from catcher to right field, and Nedley shifting from center to shortstop.

This year’s team saw Kylie Anthony go from the outfield to short and Liz Welsh move from the outfield to first base.

Both teams are senior-heavy and are known for playing sound defense behind a steady-going pitcher.

“They are both great groups, but they are different,” said coach Denny Little, who guided the Warriors to their first state crown five seasons ago. “That team, 1 through 9, anybody could hit a home run. This lineup, we’re strong 1-5, but the bottom of the order has been getting big hits. They are all good kids who want to win.

“I remember the amazing feeling of joy by accomplishing a goal that we as a community of coaches, players and parents had been working towards for over 10 years,” he said, “overcoming adversities and bumps in the road all along the way.”

In the ’19 championship — also played at 4 p.m. on a Friday – Emma Armstrong gave the Warriors a 2-0 lead with a two-run double in the third inning. Catcher Carlee Lamacz picked off a runner at first to end the third, and Emma Little and Jess Lichota made key catches later in the game.

Little’s running catch at the warning track prevented any more damage.

Little, who went on to be one of the better hitters in the PSAC while at Bloomsburg, sent a triple off the fence and she and Allie Prady scored on a bunt by Morgan Hilty and an error to make it 4-1 in the fourth.

“The thing I remember the most was the trust and passion we had as a group,” Emma Little said. “We made plenty of risky plays that ended up working out because we trusted each other as a group to get the job done.”

Armstrong homered to center to give the Warriors a 5-3 edge in the fifth.

Hilty, who — legend has it — danced to Lil Nas X’s “Old Town Road” on the bus after playoff wins, earned the win in the circle, while hard-throwing freshman Mia Smith picked up a save.

“I remember the motto for the season was ‘Do your job,’ no matter what your job was,” said Smith, now a pitcher at Pitt-Johnstown. “Coach Denny had the confidence to put anyone from the team in to play because he knew they could do something special.”

The Warriors squeezed past Donegal in the semifinals, 5-4, as Nedley and Armstrong each had two-run hits and Smith tossed two scoreless innings.

“I remember everyone was picking against us that game, and that just lit a fire under me,” Smith said. “I knew that our team was going to prove them wrong.”

A key moment: Smith sealed that win when she struck out Donegal standout Steph Reider, who was 3 for 3 with a home run when she came to bat in the seventh at Mount Aloysius.

“I knew she was a tough out and was the tying run of the game,” Smith said. “Once I released that curveball, I knew it was over. I had a feeling she would chase. I was ecstatic in that moment and was so grateful that my team had the same fight I had.”

Like this year’s WPIAL runner-up team, Penn-Trafford didn’t win the WPIAL title in ‘19. It lost to Connellsville in the semifinals. Emma Little said that lit a fire under the Warriors.

“I remember looking up to the older girls on the team because of how much they cared, which trickled down to the whole team,” Emma Little said. “That’s where passion comes into play. When it came down to it, we knew the job wasn’t finished when we lost. We had bigger things to play for — and we did.”

Smith retired 18 straight hitters to close out the state final.

“Looking at all the fans that traveled all that way to support us was the best feeling ever,” Smith said. “Everyone just rushing on the field, jumping up and down, cheering — we just did it as a huge underdog. We had immense support throughout the community and that was such an awesome feeling.”

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

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