WPIAL Softball Recaps From Wednesday, May 18th

By: Bruce Markey
Thursday, May 19, 2016 | 1:54 AM

On Monday, the district softball postseason opened with opening round action in Quad-A and Single-A. On a chilly, gray day in Western Pa, it was time for all of the Class AAA and Class AA playoff participants to hit the diamond. Well, almost all of them. Four games were pushed back to Thursday, leaving six Triple-A and five Double-A games to thin the field and set up Round Two next week.

A special thanks to Sean Meyers, Mike Azadian, Jason Tennant, Paul Paterra, Mark Schaas, Lou Rood, Jake Holmes, Bob Gregg and Don Rebel for their help on these recaps.

WPIAL CLASS AAA First Round:

Knoch Knights 6 – Montour Spartans 5 
Jessi Reed drove in 3 runs, including a 7th inning homer to break a 5 all game and send the Knights to the quarterfinals. Reed was 2-4 on the afternoon, doubling home a pair of runs in the 2nd. Knoch took a 2-0 lead in the 1st until Leah Vith blasted a 3 run homer to left center and a 3-2 Spartan lead. Reed’s double made it 4-3, Celia Knappenberger added a third inning run scoring double to add to the lead. Montour again rallied as Brittney Seibert tripled and scored and Vitt added her second homer. The solo shot tied the game at 5. Knappenberger came on to relieve Reed in the circle and fanned 6 as the winning pitcher. Erin Luffy also had 2 hits for the winners. Knoch had 8 hits, the Knights are now 16-3 overall and have won 4 straight. Seibert had 2 hits for Montour. Alyssa Boris was the losing pitcher, striking out 1 and walking 3. Montour ends the season 11-5.

Southmoreland Scotties 6 – Central Valley Warriors 5 in 10 Innings
There’s an extremely overused cliché for sporting events that states, “It’s a shame one of these teams had to lose.” However, it’s appropriate for this classic at California University. Each team arose from the brink of extinction from the WPIAL playoffs, but in the end a two-out, two-run single by winning pitcher Katie Troisi-Clark gave the Scotties (13-2)  a hard fought victory in a game packed with emotion. Just how much? Just seconds after Briana Bunner punctuated the game-winning run with a head-first slide into home plate, Central Valley catcher Caitlyn Suter exploded into tears. Suter was one of the stars of the contest with four hits in five at bats. Central Valley (11-9) actually was down to its final strike in the bottom of the seventh when Leigha Knox singled home Suter to tie the game at 4-4. Southmoreland scored first picking up two runs on successive singles by Kylee Wislosky, Lexi Klatt, Justyne Howell and Alexei Belzer. The Scotties had a chance to o[pen up the lead by loading the bases with nobody out in the third, but Jordan Uhing performed one of her many Houdini acts during the game and got out off the jam with no runs scoring. Central Valley (11-9) capitalized on the momentum with a three-run fourth inning. Suter and Leah Treemarchi singled, Knox doubled to score Suter and a single by Calista Taormina plated two. Southmoreland grabbed the lead back with two in the fifth. Olivia Porter led off with a double and scored when Bunner rifled a double to right center. Bunner scored on an error. The seventh inning heroics by Knox sent the game into extra innings. Two scoreless frames led to the 10h inning. Once a game reaches that point the inning starts with a runner on second. Uhing’s single gave Central Valley a  5-4 lead it would relinquish with two out in the bottom of the 10th. Porter, Bunner, Klatt and Wisloky each had two hits for Southmoreland. Troisi-Clark had two RBIs and struck out eight batters. Along with Suter, Knox (two hits) and Taormina (two hits) had multiple hit games for Central Valley. Knox and Taormina each had two RBIs as well.

Mount Pleasant Vikings 3 – Indiana Little Indians 2 in 8 Innings 
Chloe Poulich hit a solo home run in the 8th inning as Mount Pleasant came from behind to eliminate Indiana in a Class AAA First Round contest at Latrobe High School Wednesday afternoon. The Little Indians jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first inning but were shut down the rest of the way by the Vikings, who chipped away to tie the game with single runs in the second and sixth innings. #12-seed Mount Pleasant improves to 10-5 and will now battle section rival Southmoreland in the Class AAA Quarterfinals. The two teams split a pair of high scoring games in the regular season with the Vikings winning 7-6 while the Scotties won the rematch 9-8. Indiana’s season ends with a final record of 16-3.

Elizabeth Forward Warriors 5 – South Fayette Lions 4 
Elizabeth Forward topped South Fayette 5-4 in WPIAL 1st Round Playoff action Wednesday at California University’s Lilley Field.  EF’s Senior Pitcher Sarah Turek danced through the raindrops both literally and figuratively as she allowed South Fayette 4 runs on 10 hits, but was able to pitch out of numerous jams stranding 9 Lion runners in the process under less than ideal conditions. The Warriors scored two in the 2nd, and tacked on single runs in the 3rd, 4th, and 7th innings on 10 hits and two costly South Fayette errors.  Jessica Cartia led off the 2nd with a single to left and moved to 3rd on Kaylee Ludwick’s double and both runners scored on Cassidy Kern’s single, the third consecutive Warrior hit.  Taylor Ludwick led off the top of the 3rd with a solo HR to left center.  That put EF up 3-1.  South Fayette answered in the bottom of the 3rd when Lexi Yates led off with a double, moved to third on Courtney Blocher’s single and scored on Sara Juba’s sacrifice fly to center to cut the lead to 3-2.  EF added to the lead in the top of the 4th when Kaylee Ludwick reached on an error, moved to 2nd on Kerns’s single and scored on Lauren Cain’s two out hit to up the lead to 4-2.  South Fayette cut the deficit to 4-3 in the 5th after Bailey Kormick reached on an error, moved tpo 2nd on Emily Bryan’s single and scored on Delaney Ging’s RBI single to left.  EF added an insurance run in the top of the 7th when Lauren Matthews doubled to left and Sam Goegel entered to pinch run for Matthews. Goegel advanced to 3rd on Cain’s ground out to 2nd   and scored when a throw from 1B to catch her off the bag went wild and allowed Goegel to scamper home on the error. South Fayette found itself down two heading into the bottom of the 7th. Turek  retired the first two batters she face in the inning, but with 2 outs, Emily Bryan homered to center to make it a 5-4 game and brought up Ging who was 3-3 with a double and two singles in the game. Turek was able to get the ground out to second and EF clinched the victory.  South Fayette out hit the Warriors 11-10, but left 9 runners on base for the game. Delaney Ging had 3 hits for the Lions and Lexi Yates, Courtney Blocher, and Emily Bryan each had 2 hits as well for South Fayette. Taylor Ludwick, Jessica Cartia, Cassidy Kern, and Lauren Cain each had 2 hits for EF. The Warriors advance to take on the winner of the Yough-Ambridge game which will be played Thursday at Cal U.

West Allegheny Indians 9 – Trinity Hillers 5 
Three times, West Allegheny fell behind.  Each time, nearly immediately, the Indians responded.  Down 5-4 going to the bottom of the sixth, West Allegheny plated five runs on the way to a 9-5 win over Trinity.  The Indians (17-1) have now won 14 straight games.  Trinity (8-9) took a 1-0 lead in the first when Samantha King singled home Delaney Elling.  In the bottom of the first, Lexi Cogis walked with one out.  Mackenzie Partyka smashed a two-run homer over the right-center field fence.  One out later, Ashley Seamon doubled and scored on Taylor Cummings’ base hit.  The Hillers regained the lead in the third.  Payton Barr reached on an error.  Her courtesy runner, Lauren McGavitt, went to third when Elling singled.  Elling went to second on the play back to the infield.  Paige Gallentine singled, driving in two runs, tying the game, and went to second on the throw.  Two outs later, Kim Dunst singled up the middle to plate Galentine, giving Trinity a 4-3 advantage.  Two batters into the West Allegheny third, the game was tied again.  Carli Eger doubled and scored on Seamon’s single.  In the Trinity sixth, Dunst reached on a throwing error and scored on Helena Wolenski’s one-out double, giving the Hillers their third one-run lead in the game.  It didn’t last long.  Charleigh Bates singled up the middle to start the Indians’ sixth.  Amy Nolte bunted for a hit, Bates going to third on an errant throw.  Nolte stole second.  Both runners scored when Brooke Wilson’s grounder to short was thrown away. Eventually, the Indians would load the bases with two outs.  Cummings tripled to right-center, clearing the bases and sending the Indians to the quarterfinals Monday against Beaver Area.  Seamon got the win for West Allegheny, allowing only one earned run on six hits over seven innings.  Trinity starter Addison Barr took the loss, giving up nine runs, six earned on 11 hits.  Cummings went 2-for-4 with four RBI.  Seamon, Bates and Nolte also had two hits apiece.

Beaver Bobcats 4 – Mars Fighting Planets 1 
At North Allegheny High School in Girls WPIAL AAA first round softball action the Beaver Bobcats the number 6 seed defeat the Mars Planets the 11th seed by a score of 4-1. The Bobcats broke open a scoreless game in the 4th inning scoring 2 runs on 3 hits. Paige Ziggas and Tayvon Rousseu both had RBI singles to give Beaver the lead. Mars would respond n the top of the 5th with a run to cut the lead by 1. Two consecutive doubles the second by Blake Kitt to drive in Izzy Berkopec to make it 2-1. The Bobcats would plate single runs in the 5th and 6th. In the 5th Casey Farkasovsky singled and her courtesy runner Susan Hill would score on an error. Then in the 6th a Stacy Christ double a sacrifice, and an RBI sac fly by Rousseau would make the score 4-1. Farkasovsky would get the win for Beaver going the distance allowing 1 run, on 7 hits, she struck out 6, and walked 1.She retired the final 6 batters and 7 of the last 8. Rousseau had 2 hits and 2 RBI, Jen Kondraki had 2 hits, and Haley Champ had 2 hits to lead the Bobcats who improve to 11-5 on the season and will face the winner of the West Allegheny Trinity game in the quarterfinals next week on a day and time to be determined. Mars ends their season at 9-8. Blake kit went 2 for 3 with two doubles and an RBI to lead Mars.

WPIAL CLASS AA First Round:

Ellwood City Wolverines 11 – Neshannock Lancers 4 
The Wolverines remain unbeaten with the win at Seneca Valley. Lincoln High broke the game open with a 5 run 5th inning, paced by a 3 run blast by designated player Regan Mittler, who ended the day with 4 RBI’s.  Camile Maine had 3 hits and drove in 3 runs. Ariana Galloway added 2 hits and drove in a run. Skyler Greco was strong in the circle, allowing 6 hits, she fanned 7.  Ellwood City is 17-0.  For Neshannock, Bella Burreli doubled home 2 runs in the 3rd. The Lancers used 3 pitchers in the game. Carly Aven started and went 2.1 innings. Hannah Lash pitched 1.2 innings and was the losing pitcher. Cassie Burreli faced 3 batters and gave up the Mittler homer. Aven returned for the final 2 innings, she ended up with 6 strikeouts. Neshannock ends the season 10-8 and were defeated 3 times by Ellwood City.

Avonworth Antelopes 7 – Mohawk Warriors 5 
Avonworth lived up to their reputation for being an offensive powerhouse on Tuesday afternoon. The Antelopes defeated the Mohawk Warriors 7-5 in a game that featured a combined 24 hits. It did not take long for these teams to exchange runs as the Warriors, Leah Woyteck got on to begin the game. Her great speed and aggressive base running put her in scoring position for Tristan Voss who opened the scoring with an RBI single. Avonworth answered back in the bottom half with three runs of their own after a two-RBI triple that bounced off the top of the fence and back into play by Pat Aliskowitz. Aliskowitz later scored on a Gretchen Schmitt single. Tristan Voss racked up her second RBI of the game on a ground out that scored Ashley Young to cut the Antelopes lead to one. With two outs in the bottom of the fourth, some Warrior defensive miscues cost their squad a run as Addy Helfrich crossed the plate for the second time in the game. Facing a 4-2 deficit in the top of the fifth, Mohawk lead the inning with a walk and two hits. The Warriors plated their third run on an RBI ground out from Malory Norge. The clutch hit of the game for Mohawk came immediately after that, as Makenzie McConnell ripped her third hit of the day but this time two runs came across for the Warriors. For the first time since the first inning, Mohawk had the lead but only for a short time. In the bottom half of the sixth, Elaina Tkaezenko laid down a bunt down the first baseline. Which was followed by a throwing error that sailed over the first baseman, Ashley Young’s head and into right field. Tkaezenko advanced two bases on the error to set the stage for Addy Helfrich who destroyed a pitch that ended up hitting the scoreboard in center field which gave the Antelopes the lead. Three pitches later, Kim D’Ottavio got a hold of a fast ball and cranked her second hit of the game to deep center field which landed in the trees to make the score 7-5. Pat Aliskowitz came for the sixth and the seventh innings and retired the Warriors in order to cement the victory for the Antelopes. Aliskowitz brought home the win after D’Ottavio started. On the other side, Tristen Voss suffered the defeat. Avonworth will advance to the next round and take on Steel Valley.

Steel Valley Ironmen 2 – Burrell Buccaneers 1 in 10 Innings
Angelina Martin’s two-out single scored the winning run in the 10th inning for Steel Valley, as the Ironmen upset the No. 5 Burrell Buccaneers in the Class AA first-round contest at Hampton High School. The extra-innings affair proved to be a thriller, as both teams appeared to be closing in on victory numerous times. Steel Valley drew first blood in the third frame, as Martin reached on an error to begin the inning. She was eliminated on a fielder’s choice by Chelsea Rohan, who was replaced by courtesy runner Kayla Hartnet. A single by Morgan Farrah moved Hartnet to second, and both runners advanced on a groundout. With two outs, SV pitcher Maddie Cotter delivered a sharp single to center field to plate Hartnet. Burrell pitcher Kasey Wolford limited the damage, though, as she stranded the pair of runners. That would become a theme throughout the matchup, as both squads consistently had baserunners, but failed to deliver hits at opportune times. The score remained 1-0 in favor of the 12th-seeded Ironmen until the bottom of the seventh. Lexi Uzelac delivered a one-out double for the Bucs, and Marissa Roberts came through with a two-out, two-strike double to plate Uzelac and deadlock the game. Wolford followed with an infield single, but Cotter induced a groundout from Brittany Dunn to keep the game tied. In both the eighth and ninth innings, each team had a runner on base, but the hurlers managed to escape the jams. When the game entered the 10th inning, international tiebreaker rules were utilized, meaning that each team begin the inning with a runner on second base. Steel Valley capitalized, as Martin delivered against Dunn, who replaced Wolford in the circle in the eighth inning. Burrell appeared poised to counter in the bottom of the 10th, as the Bucs sacrificed their runner to third with just one out, but Cotter buckled down to record a strikeout and a groundout to seal the win. Incredibly, the teams combined for 26 hits, but just three runs. With the triumph, the Ironmen advance to the quarterfinals.

Deer Lakes Lancers 6 – Carmichaels Mighty Mikes 0 
A tight game for four-and-a-half innings opened up with a 5-run fifth inning for Deer Lakes as the Lancers advanced to the Quarterfinals with a 6-0 win over Carmichaels. The scoring chances for Carmichaels were few but their best two opportunities came in the first 3 innings. The Mikes started the game with a leadoff single from Megan Walker, who reached 2nd base on an error. Laura Walker’s sacrifice bunt put a runner on 3rd and it looked as if the Mikes would score on a fly ball to right field by Natalie McNett. However, a perfect throw from right fielder Rachel Tanilli caught Megan Walker tagging from third base to end the inning. The Lancers scored the game’s first run in the 2nd inning when Maureen Hutchinson tripled to lead off the inning and then scored on an RBI single by Stephanie Drapela. Carmichaels had a chance to answer in the top of the third with Gina Ranieri, who walked, on second base with two outs when Megan Walker lined a base hit into centerfield. Ranieri, however, was held at third base and was stranded there. In the next half-inning, Shae Robson of Deer Lakes led off with a shot into left field but she was thrown out at third base trying to stretch a double to a triple. The score remained 1-0 heading into the bottom of the fifth. The inning started with a leadoff single from  9-hitter Sarah Blinn, who advanced to second base on a 1-out bunt single by Robson. The bunt was intended to be a sacrifice, but Robson beat out the throw with a questionable “safe” call at first. That call proved to be huge with what was to come. Maria Taliani reached on an error and then Blinn scored on a sacrifice fly from Danielle Huffman. Hutchinson then singled in Robson and after a Katelynn Blair walk, Drapela hit a bases-clearing triple to push the lead to 6-0. Carmichaels, who only had 3 hits through 6 innings, all by Megan Walker, did get a couple of runners on in the 7th with a single by Emma Lowry and another Ranieri walk, but again failed to push any runs across the plate. Robson was stellar inside the circle, getting the 4-hit shutout win with 5 strkeouts and 2 walks. Laura Walker took the loss for Carmichaels. Deer Lakes awaits the winner of Thursday’s matchup between Bentworth and Laurel.

Freeport Yellow Jackets 8 – McGuffey Highlanders 4 
Freeport broke open a close game with a big sixth inning en route to stunning 4th-seed McGuffey Wednesday evening at Latrobe High School in a Class AA First Round contest. Leading 2-1, the Yellow Jackets exploded for six runs in the sixth to take control. Both teams had scored a run in the first inning, but Freeport took the lead for good with a run in the fifth inning before pulling away in the sixth. Kristie Radvan was the winning pitcher for Freeport, which improves to 13-4 and will play the South Park/South Side winner in the district Quarterfinals. Moriah McGuier was the tough luck losing pitcher as the Highlanders outhit the Yellow Jackets 8-3 but three errors proved costly.  McGuffey’s season ends at 14-3.