Penn-Trafford softball step-sisters chase state title together

By: Bill Beckner Jr.
Tuesday, June 10, 2025 | 8:38 PM

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Penn-Trafford senior softball players Kylie Anthony and Cam Ponko have made tweaks to their swings this season.

Anthony has embraced “sighting,” a timing approach that she and her teammates learned from former Warriors standout Emma Little.

Ponko is focused more on “slugging,” which also shortens the swing and gets the bat into the hitting zone more quickly.

It figures a pair of sisters would want to do something differently. Yes, sisters.

Anthony and Ponko are step-sisters, a relationship that began when they were third-graders. Anthony’s father, Duane, married Ponko’s mother, Angela.

That means a state championship Friday would carry even more meaning for the pair who share more than a dinner table.

“I think Kylie has the top bunk for the week,” Warriors coach Denny Little said. “They have always played well together and have a fun time together. It’s a neat dynamic to watch them.”

WPIAL runner-up Penn-Trafford (23-3) will take on District 3 third-place team Greencastle-Antrim (22-3) for the PIAA 5A title at 4 p.m. Friday at Penn State’s Nittany Lion Softball Park.

Anthony and Ponko have been key two-way players all season. They go together like a wink and a nod.

Anthony is 8 for 11 in three state playoff games. She went 4 for 4 with a tying home run in the top of the seventh in a 6-5 walk-off win against Red Land in the quarterfinals.

She was 3 for 4 in an 8-2 win over West Allegheny in the semis.

Ponko is one of the best hitters in the state. The IUP commit is slashing .486/.558/.914 with eight home runs, 37 RBIs and 35 runs scored. She went 2 for 3 with an RBI against Red Land, then drove in two runs against West Allegheny.

Anthony is hitting .388 with three homers, 18 RBIs and 21 runs. She plans to play softball and volleyball at Westminster.

There was a glimmer of a possibility the girls might both enroll at IUP, but Anthony likely could not do both sports there.

“We were friends before (becoming sisters),” Anthony said. “We do everything together.”

Anthony and Ponko also line up next to one another on defense — Anthony at shortstop and Ponko at third — and they hit back-to-back in the lineup with Anthony in the No. 2 spot and Ponko batting third.

Neither girl attended the 2019 state final won by Penn-Trafford, but they watched the game after the Warriors lost to Shaler in the WPIAL championship. They are excited to play on a college field and try to lead the Warriors to their second state title.

“To get to the state championship our senior year is great,” Ponko said. “To step onto the field (Friday) will be surreal.”

Anthony has shown her versatility over her prep career. She played right and center field as a freshman, saw time at shortstop, second base and right field as a sophomore and moved to short full time as a junior and senior.

To the hitting approaches, Anthony said she is seeing the ball match up to the bat more efficiently.

“I have made adjustments and have been really confident,” Anthony said.

Little is known for having his hitters dabble in swing changes. The sighting technique, which initially looks like a player might bunt before they pull back slightly and swing through to match the incoming pitch, seems to fit Anthony well.

“Kylie wasn’t seeing the ball perfectly,” the coach said. “Emma Little brought in this technique. Kylie always had a beautiful swing, but I think she is seeing the ball better.”

Ponko has put more emphasis on a two-strike approach.

“It’s a mindset thing,” Ponko said. “It depends on what works individually and what is more beneficial to each hitter.”

Or in this case, each step-sister.

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

Tags: Penn-Trafford