Trib HSSN softball player of the week for June 9, 2024

By: Don Rebel
Sunday, June 9, 2024 | 6:20 PM

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Trib HSSN softball player of the week: Shelby Telegdy

School: Elizabeth Forward

Class: Senior

Position: Pitcher, third base

#Earned: Whether it’s with her right arm or with her explosive bat, Shelby Telegdy has been a dominant force for Elizabeth Forward in all four years of playing high school softball. As she winds downs her scholastic career, she is saving some of her best ball for last. After leading the Warriors to WPIAL gold for the first time in five years, Telegdy began the state playoffs by shining in the circle. She kept Big Spring off the board for eight innings while allowing only three hits and striking out 12, leading up to teammate Julia Johnson’s walk-off home run in the bottom of the eighth inning for the 1-0 win. Telegdy was 1 for 3 in the win over the Bulldogs. Then she let her bat do the talking in the state quarterfinals. Telegdy finished 4 for 5 with a single, two doubles and a three-run homer, driving in six Warriors as Elizabeth Forward crushed Chartiers Valley, 11-1. She allowed no earned runs and six hits and fanned eight Colts batters.

What coach says: “To have a senior step up the way she did in this game sparked the entire team,” Elizabeth Forward coach Harry Rutherford said about Telegdy’s performance in the PIAA quarterfinals. “She told the team that it was important not to allow Chartiers Valley to have any momentum going into this game. She wanted to put runs on the board immediately and have the Colts try to come from behind, which she helped contribute to in the very first inning. Going 4 for 5 and then her pitching as well, it was a great performance is all I can say.”

“I would say it was keeping the Big Spring hitters off-balance,” Rutherford said of her performance in the circle against Big Spring in the first round of the PIAA playoffs. “She used all her pitches, especially the curveball and changeup. Those two pitches were the difference.

“She has always been a great hitter, having led the team in average all four years of her high school career. She has gotten the timely hit when it was needed. Her pitching this year has been where she has improved the most. I think it’s because she has realized she doesn’t have to do it all, she has a great defense behind her and she has become more relaxed and the end result has been she’s been more effective.

“I believe the entire team is determined to go and do what it takes to get to the state final and give it everything they have. They were disappointed last year, and they do not want to experience that again this year.”

Background: Telegdy will continue her academic and softball career starting in the fall at Seton Hill. The four-year starter is capping off her scholastic career in grand style. She is batting .582 with a team high in several categories including 39 hits, 14 doubles, seven home runs and 36 RBIs. Telegdy has relied on the long ball in the postseason with three home runs in five postseason games. In the circle, she is 22-1 with a 0.47 ERA. She has walked 22 and struck out 187 in 122 innings pitched. In the WPIAL Class 4A softball title game, Telegdy went 2 for 3 with a double and a home run and three RBIs as the Warriors won their first district crown since 2019 by beating Hampton, 10-2. Telegdy excels in the classroom as well the softball diamond, having graduated from Elizabeth Forward with a 4.3 GPA.

2024 Trib HSSN Softball Players of the Week

Week 9 — Gabby Perod, Neshannock

Week 8 — Emma Paul, Armstrong

Week 7 — Alivia Lantzy, Avonworth

Week 6 — Addison Deal, Laurel

Week 5 — Bailey Barnyak, Carmichaels

Week 4 — Mackenzie Reese, Hampton

Week 3 — Sydney Gonglik, Bentworth

Week 2 — Lexie Hames, Seneca Valley

Week 1 — Sydney Sekely, South Park

Tags: Elizabeth Forward