Yorty’s home run lifts Monessen past Leechburg in WPIAL Class A softball playoffs
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Wednesday, May 23, 2018 | 6:18 PM
Monessen was trying to win with small ball.
Instead, the Greyhounds happily settled for the long ball in the bottom of the seventh inning Wednesday in the WPIAL Class A softball semifinals at Peterswood Park.
A three-run, walk-off home run by freshman Hannah Yorty gave Monessen a 5-2 victory and a spot in the championship game next week.
The Greyhounds (15-3) will face defending WPIAL and PIAA champion West Greene in the finals May 30 or May 31 at Seton Hill.
With the score tied 2-2, Dana Vatakis slammed a single to start the rally. Sydney Caterino, who had three infield singles, bunted to third. With nobody covering third base, Vatakis went all the way to third.
Destiny Habeck bunted toward third, but Vatakis couldn't score, and Habeck was safe at first. After Mattie Telegraphis struck out, Yorty stepped to the plate and smacked a towering drive over left center to end it.
“At that point, I was just trying to get the bat on the ball, we just needed one,” Yorty said. “But that worked pretty well.”
“As a freshman, Hannah's been doing the job for us all year long,” said Greyhounds coach Bo Teets. “She's been able to put bats on balls all year, and we're glad she got around on that one.”
Leechburg (13-5) will play Union in the consolation game Tuesday at a site and time to be determined. The winner will enter the PIAA playoffs June 4 as the No. 3 team from the WPIAL.
“I'm very proud of the way the girls played,” Blue Devils coach Debbie Young said. “We ask them to give their all, and that's what they certainly did. We went down to the wire. I thought a Cinderella story was coming along, but it was an excellent game, and we gave them a run for their money.”
Monessen's Cara Wheeler broke a scoreless game between Vatakis and Leechburg's Morgan Pierce in the fourth with a home run to left.
“That was an at-bat where Cara swung through a couple of change-ups,” Teets said. “For four years, she's been working as someone who's tried to get better at the plate.”
After Vatakis ran her no-hit streak to 11 consecutive innings, Leechburg finally broke through against the senior righty in the fifth.
Kristen Knapp singled past short. Emma Ritchie bunted and took second on an overthrow beyond first base. Knapp went to third.
Knapp came home on a wild pitch, and Ritchie scored when she beat Maddie Guzzie's throw home from short on a fielder's choice to give the Blue Devils a 2-1 advantage.
“We seemed to be more relaxed the second time around in the batting order,” Young said. “That's been our mantra all year. The first time around, we seem to have a little struggle, but then we start hitting.”
Monessen tied it in the bottom of the fifth when Yorty singled to left to score Vatakis, but Caterino was caught rounding third to end the inning.
“We had two similar teams that competed all the way to the end,” Teets said. “It's unfortunate that somebody had to lose.”
Monessen will be attempting to become the first Westmoreland County Class A softball team to win a WPIAL title.
George Guido is a freelance writer.
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