Springfield Township defeated top-seeded Dock Mennonite Academy 3-0 to capture the District One 3A title Tuesday. It is the program’s first district crown since 1994. (Photo provided courtesy of Springfield Township softball).
#1-2 SPRINGFIELD TOWNSHIP 3, #1-1 DOCK MENNONITE ACADEMY 0
Twenty-four years.
That’s how long it had been since Springfield Township last won a district title in softball. That drought came to a glorious end on Tuesday afternoon when the Spartans silenced their nemesis, a Dock Mennonite Academy squad that soundly defeated Springfield 10-2 in last year’s title game.
“It’s a weird feeling because this is the first time we’ve won districts in quite a while,” junior Hannah Sebenick said. “I was confident that we were going to win today, but I never expected how it would feel to win. It was insane.
“The last out – she got out on a swing for a third strike. It was insane. Everyone was screaming, everyone was jumping. My catcher (Mary Kate Smith) jumped up in my arms. It was the most excited I’ve ever been about anything.”
Sebenick once again stole the spotlight. The Spartans’ junior pitcher has been all but untouchable in two district games, tossing a two-hit shutout Tuesday on the heels of a four-hit shutout in the Spartans’ 10-0 win over New Hope-Solebury. In both games, she struck out 11 and did not walk a batter.
“She hasn’t allowed a run in the last two games, so to get two complete game shutouts with 22 strikeouts is pretty good,” Ringgold said. “She’s been doing that all year.
“When she hits her spots and when she’s on, we’re going to be a tough out, we’re going to be a tough team to beat.”
What is Sebenick’s secret?
“I really try to focus on improvement a lot,” she said. “A lot of times if I don’t hit the right spot, but I get enough movement on it where I’m striking them out, I’m happy with it.
“If I miss a spot and it’s still a strike, I’m not going to be upset about it. If I miss a spot and it’s called a ball, I’m not going to be upset about it. I’ll just focus on the next pitch. My mindset is if I get a ball, I’m just going to have to blow them away with the next pitch.”
Sebenick hadn’t forgotten what it felt like to take last year’s beating at the hands of Dock.
“Springfield has had a long history of losing to Dock in that game,” the Spartans’ junior pitcher said. “It was a little daunting. Last year was a downer, but this year I was pretty confident in our team. I kind of felt we were going to win.”
Part of that confidence came from the camaraderie this year’s team developed.
“I think as a team we got closer,” Sebenick said. “We had some real bonding, and we got closer as a team personally. We also focused a lot on bringing each other up, so if one girl struck out, the other hit a home run. That’s just how it was this season. We were just really tight, and we care a lot about each other.”
Sebenick also pointed to the addition of three freshmen to the starting lineup at second base (Chloe Morales), right field (Kate Wojeck) and left field (Mikayla Quinn) as significant. Her coach agreed..
“I’ve got some quality freshmen this year,” Ringgold said. “We’re a small school, and we always have to start freshmen.
“The freshmen I was able to coach really listened, really bought in. You could see them progressively getting better throughout the season.”
The team, according to Sebenick, was relaxed heading into Tuesday’s game.
“We were a little hyped, but I kind of felt like it was just another game,” she said. “I treated it like – I’m going to play this game like I would every single other game, just as hard as I can.”
The Spartans scored all the runs Sebenick would need in the top of the third. Wojeck singled to lead off the frame, and Mary Kate Smith drew a walk. Both runners scored on a two-base throwing error on Sam Wynne’s sacrifice bunt.
“Anytime anybody on my team hits, I am the craziest one on the bench,” Sebenick said. “I’m always screaming my head off.
“It doesn’t matter if we’re down 15 and scored a single run – I’m still up screaming my head off. I think it’s so exciting no matter how the runs are gotten.”
The third run crossed the plate on Sebenick’s groundout.
“That kind of set the mood for the entire game,” Sebenick said of getting the early 3-0 lead. “We went in pretty confident and then we got the lead and we just knew.”
The Spartans held an 8-4 edge in hits. Wojeck (2-for-3, run) Mikayla Quinn (2-for-4) and Kaitlyn Cannon (2-for-4) led the way.
“We were hitting the ball well,” Ringgold said. “But we weren’t getting timely hits in situations where we had runners on.
“I thought I’d mix it up a little bit and put some pressure on the defense (by bunting) and see what happens. I did it early enough in the game, and we were able to squeak out runs.”
Ringgold’s daughter, Jewell, played for Springfield Township three years ago, and the Spartans’ coach recalls that Dock has always stood between the Spartans and a district crown.
“She was a good player and we had a good pitcher, but we just could never beat Dock,” Ringgold said. “To beat Dock is just incredible, and the way we did it without allowing them to score a run felt even better.
“They’re always a well-coached team, and they always play well. It wasn’t a shock because I knew this team could do it, and I preached it all year to them. It was just a matter of them believing they could do it, and once that happened, I knew we had a shot.”
The title sets the bar high for future Spartan squads.
“It gives the young guys something to look forward to next year, something to build off next year going forward,” Ringgold said. “They can tell the freshmen coming in – ‘This is what we did last year. We’re going to do it again.’ It kind of puts pressure on the team without the coach doing it. I think it does wonders for the program.”
Springfield Township (9-8, 6-8 SOL) will take on the District 12 champion in Monday’s PIAA Class 3A opener.
Springfield Township 003 000 0 3-8-0
Dock Mennonite Academy 000 000 0 0-4-3
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