Trib HSSN softball team of the week for June 17, 2024

By: Don Rebel
Monday, June 17, 2024 | 10:07 PM

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Trib HSSN softball team of the week: Neshannock Lancers

Coach: Jackie Lash (fifth year)

Record: The Neshannock softball team celebrated three championships this spring. They finished 12-0 to win Section 1-2A by two games over Laurel. The Lancers then claimed a third straight WPIAL title with a 3-0 victory over Bentworth in the Class 2A final. Then the perfect season of 26-0 was completed with a PIAA 2A championship game win over South Williamsport, 12-2. It was the second time in three years the Lancers finished undefeated.

#Earned: The week began for Neshannock against a familiar face in the state softball semifinals in a third meeting against section rival Laurel. In a span of three days earlier this year, the Lancers defeated the Spartans twice, winning at home 3-0, and then picking up a 5-1 victory at Laurel. The shutout triumph was a perfect game thrown by junior pitcher Addy Frye. Neshannock scored an unearned run in the top of the first inning of the PIAA third-round contest, and that was all that was needed in the narrow, 1-0 win. In the state finals, Neshannock scored two runs in the first and two more in the third inning before South Williamsport cut the lead in half with two runs in the bottom of the third inning. The Lancers took all the suspense out of the game with an eight-run fourth inning and won the game in five innings, 12-2, joining the 2012 and 2022 Neshannock softball teams as state champions. In her five years as head coach, Jackie Lash has led the Lancers to 100 wins, three WPIAL championships and two PIAA crowns.

Standout performers: Junior Miley Anderson reached first base on an error and ended up scoring on another Laurel error for the game’s only run in the semifinal win. Frye allowed one hit and struck out 12 Laurel batters. In the PIAA finals at Nittany Lion Softball Park, sophomore Jaidon Nogay led the offense with three hits, three runs scored and three RBIs. Frye and junior Gabby Quinn each had two hits, including a home run. Quinn drove in four runs. In the circle, Frye allowed two runs on four hits against the high-scoring Mountaineers, with one walk and seven strikeouts. The icing on the cake was senior Kat Nativio making the final out in both the 2022 and 2024 state championship games.

Last year: The Lancers were close to perfect in 2023. They won their section title with another 12-0 record, they repeated as WPIAL champions, cruising past rival Laurel, 12-2, in the district finals, then they won their first two games in the PIAA playoffs over Penns Valley and Sharpsville. However the 48-game winning streak built over two years ended with a state semifinal loss to eventual champion Everett, 9-6. In the last three years, the Neshannock softball team has gone a mind-numbing 74-1.

Remember when: Neshannock has now won five WPIAL titles and three PIAA gold trophies in program history, with the first of those crowns coming a dozen years ago. The Lancers were undefeated Section 5-2A champions, but lost to Deer Lakes in the 2012 WPIAL semifinals, 2-0. Following a victory over Riverside in the 2A consolation game, Neshannock defeated Philipsburg-Osceola, Fairview and Central (Martinsburg) to reach the 2012 PIAA 2A softball championship game at Penn State. The Lancers edged Warrior Run, 4-3, in eight innings when Madison Altmeyer scored on a wild pitch, to win the team’s first softball championship. The Lancers would go on to win back-to-back WPIAL gold in 2013 and ‘14.

2024 Trib HSSN Softball Teams of the Week

Week 10 – Laurel Spartans

Week 9 – Mohawk Warriors

Week 8 – Thomas Jefferson Jaguars

Week 7 – Latrobe Wildcats

Week 6 – Penn-Trafford Warriors

Week 5 – Hempfield Spartans

Week 4 – Chartiers-Houston Buccaneers

Week 3 – West Allegheny Indians

Week 2 – Elizabeth Forward Warriors

Week 1 – Ellwood City Wolverines

Tags: Neshannock