Central Bucks East defeated Pennsbury 4-2 to earn a spot in Friday’s District One AAAA softball final against Neshaminy. To view photos of all the action, please visit the Photo Gallery.
By Mary Jane Souder
WARMINSTER – Kayla Ventura, Theresa Haug and Brittany Tillotson are the youngsters on a veteran Central Bucks East softball team that is in the midst of a storybook postseason run.
While the seniors are the heart and soul of this year’s squad, the three freshmen have been major contributors, and in Thursday’s high stakes District One AAAA semifinal contest against Pennsbury – a 4-2 East win, all three were fearless under pressure.
Tillotson drove in a pair of runs in a three-run first while Haug, who started in the circle, allowed just three hits and one run in three and a third innings of work. Ventura, meanwhile, spent three of the last four innings displaying poise under pressure as she worked her way out of one tight spot after another.
“We definitely got out of some jams, some pressure situations,” East coach Erin Scott said. “I do pressure situations at practice.
“That last inning (Pennsbury) had runners on second and third with two outs. We do runners on second and third with one out about a hundred times, so all I said to them is, ‘Guys, we do this all the time. Just make the plays. Pitchers - throw strikes, and we got this.’ They handled the pressure.”
No one handled it better than Ventura, the unflappable freshman hurler who seems to thrive on pressure. On Thursday, she relieved Haug with one out in the fourth and Falcon runners on second and third.
Not exactly an ideal spot for rookie, but Ventura was unfazed, coaxing a foul popup to first baseman Sierra Huckfeldt for the inning’s second out and then inducing a harmless popup to shortstop Jess Haug to end that Falcon threat.
In the fifth, the Falcons – who trailed 3-1 - opened the inning with four consecutive singles by Fiona Link, Taylor Boltersdorf, Christina Bascara and Jess Greenwald (RBI). With the Falcons’ dangerous three, four and five hitters waiting on deck, escaping with a tie seemed like it might well be the best case scenario, but Ventura wasn’t interested in settling for that.
Instead, she retired the next three batters she faced on a popup to short, a strikeout and a foul pop to the catcher, and East still had a 3-2 lead. After a one-two-three sixth, Ventura found herself in a bit of a jam yet again in the seventh.
With one out, Bascara was hit by a pitch, and she moved up to second on Greenwald’s groundout. Obert stroked a sharp single over third and then moved up to second on the throw, and suddenly, the Falcons had the tying run in scoring position.
Again, Ventura rose to the occasion, coaxing a soft fly ball out of Falcon cleanup hitter Suzanne Swanicke for the game’s final out.
“She keeps her cool in pressure situations, doesn’t let it get to her and just focuses on hitting her spots and nothing else,” said catcher Julia Schoenefeld, who called many of the pitches in Thursday’s win. “Both of them hit their spots incredibly. I couldn’t have asked for them to pitch any better than they did in pressure situations.
“I’ve kind of learned that I need to go out there and talk to them, calm them down. They’re young, but they do the job, and they’re incredible.”
Offensively, the Patriots scored all the runs they would need in the first inning. With one out, Kerry Schulz legged out a bunt single, and then Allie Chase singled to left. Julia Schoenewald was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Caroline Schoenewald’s bloop single plated the game’s first run, and then Tillotson stroked a two-run double to center.
“As a freshman, there’s a lot to live up to,” Tillotson said. “The players on this team are absolutely phenomenal.
“My dad has always told me, ‘Relax, don’t think,’ and so I went up there thinking – I just have to do this. Every time I go up to bat, under my breath, I always say, ‘I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.’ I would say that every time I stepped back in after I fouled off a couple of pitches. I finally hit that, and it made me extremely happy.”
It’s safe to say Tillotson’s teammates were equally happy as her double spotted the Patriots an early 3-0 lead.
“Brady has really stepped up,” Scott said. “(Third base) is a position that was unfilled. We were rotating people in there. We were looking for consistency, and she’s really stepped up and earned that spot.
“Our whole lineup can hit, but she’s coming up behind a couple of good hitters. If they’re on base, she’s produced in a lot of our games. From the seniors to the freshmen, they all got the job done.”
In the bottom of the first, Obert roped a solo home run over the center field fence to make it a 3-1 game.
Just how big was it for the Falcons to fall behind before they ever had an at-bat.
“It was big, but I don’t think it was monumental,” coach Frank McSherry said. “We’ve been down before, but their pitchers just did a great job against us. That’s all. You’ve got to give them credit. They were the better team today.”
Pennsbury mound ace Val Buehler settled into a groove after the Patriots’ three-run first, allowing just two hits over the next four innings. After the Falcons trimmed the Patriots’ lead to 3-2 with a single run in the fifth, the Patriots answered with a run of their own – albeit unearned - in the top of the sixth. Highlights of the inning included a leadoff double by Julia Schoenewald as well bunt singles by Caroline Schoenewald and Danielle Marzetti and a two-out error on pinch hitter Kristina Posner's grounder to short, allowing the Patriots to take a 4-2 lead. That lead held up until the final out.
“That lineup was making me nervous,” Scott said. “They can hit. It could have gone in a lot of different directions.”
“The girls all stepped up. We had two people come off the bench and get the job done for us, and that just shows you – it’s all about team. All of them contributed, and I’m just so proud of them. It’s just been such a fun ride so far.”
Tillotson echoed those sentiments.
“It’s been absolutely incredible,” the Patriots’ rookie said. “The girls on this team are absolutely amazing. They’re so nice, and they’re phenomenal athletes to add to that.
“It’s great to know they always have my back, they’re always there. If you mess up at practice, they’re like, ‘You’re good, you’re good. Don’t worry about it.’ It’s just great to know they’re always there for you. It’s a lot of fun. We all love each other, and it’s just a really good team.”
The seventh-seeded Patriots will face top-seeded Neshaminy in Friday’s district title game at William Tennent High School at 4 p.m. One win separates them from a district title.
“We knew we could do it,” Julia Schoenewald said of her team’s postseason run. “We just had to play our hearts out, so that’s what we’re doing. It feels great.”
“Honestly, I’ve had a positive feeling this whole time,” Scott said. “I’m confident in this team, and I just had this feeling this season.
“I was happy to qualify states, and now that we’re there, I just want to keep going. As we continue to play the way that we’re playing – it’s the best ball we have played, and it’s just giving me even more confidence in their ability and what they can do.”
The third-seeded Falcons will take on North Penn, the tournament’s 13th-seed, in Friday’s third place game at Hatboro-Horsham at 4 p.m. McSherry had a simple message for his players after Thursday’s loss.
“I tell them to bounce back, that’s all,” the Falcons’ coach said. “We have time. At least this wasn’t a season-ending game.”
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