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FRANCONIA TWP – They’ll be replaying this ending for a long, long time.
One second, Souderton coach Courtney Hughes was running towards home next to senior Olivia Shoemaker with what she was sure was the tying run.
The next the Indians were watching in stunned disbelief as the North Penn Maidens – thanks to an impossible diving stop and then throw by North Penn second baseman Alyssa Campbell – celebrated their heartstopping 3-2 win over the Indians on Friday afternoon.
The Maidens, who took a 3-0 lead into the seventh, had survived the Indians’ two-out rally and escaped with the big win.
“I was nervous because this happened to us before,” Campbell said of losing in the final inning. “It was like – no way can we allow this to happen again, so when we got the final out, it felt like we won a championship.
“It was big, it was big.”
The two teams might still be playing if it hadn’t been for Campbell’s heroics. It looked for all the world like the Indians had tied it up when – with a runner on third and two outs – freshman Sarah Derstine hit a sharp grounder up the middle.
But Campbell robbed the freshman speedster of a sure base hit by making an improbable diving, back-handed stop and then firing to first, just beating a diving Derstine for the game’s final out.
“It was two outs, and I was honestly anticipating it coming to me because I think every ball is coming to me,” Campbell said. “When it was hit, I don’t remember thinking. I just remember reacting – do whatever I have to do to get it. I saw the girl diving into first, and I was like, ‘I have to hurry up and throw it hard.’”“I knew she had it,” teammate Miranda Sergas said. “We practice a lot, we practice really hard, and that pays off.”
Campbell’s throw brought an end to a gutsy Souderton rally. The Indians trailed 3-0 entering the bottom of the seventh but didn’t have an ounce of quit.
The rally began when pinch hitter Brittany Beebe lined a two-out single to center, and then it was sophomore Taylor Yoder slapping a bunt single through the left side of the infield.
That brought senior Olivia Shoemaker to the plate, and the Indians’ leadoff batter hit a screaming line drive down the left field line for a two-run triple that made things real interesting.
“I moved my order around a little bit, and it’s worked out,” Souderton coach Courtney Hughes said. “My bottom of the order is getting on base, and Olivia is coming up in these RBI situations and every time makes something happen.
“She’s our number one clutch hitter, and that’s something we didn’t have at the beginning of the year.”
Shoemaker hit a first pitch fastball.
“It was inside,” she said. “I saw the catcher creep inside, and I was like, ‘This is the one.’
“Coach (Bob) Tybring came up to me before the inning and said, ‘First pitch is always there,’ and in my mind, I knew. I just wanted it for my team.”The two teams might still be playing if Campbell hadn’t delivered the highlight reel play to end it on Derstine’s sharp grounder up the middle.
“Sarah’s my fastest girl too,” Hughes said. “She’s a freshman, but you could tell she had the mentality that she was going to get a hit.
“It took the play of the year to stop that, and that’s what we talk about – who wants it more.”
“I thought it was through and we were scoring,” Shoemaker said. “It didn’t happen that way, and it was definitely a heartbreaker.
“Sarah had a nice hard hit, but the girl made a good play on it. There’s nothing she could have done better. It just played out how it played out.”
For the better part of the game, it looked as though one run might win it as North Penn’s Kellianna Bradstreet and Souderton’s Liz Parkins took turns mowing down the opposition.
After walking the first batter she faced, Parkins retired eight in a row – striking out six – before Mary Ward legged out an infield single with two outs in the third. It was the Maidens’ only hit through five innings.
The Indians managed three singles through four innings, but in the fifth, they had a golden opportunity to get in the scoreboard when – with one out – they loaded the bases, thanks to a single by Elysha Sowers, a walk and a rare Maiden error.
They appeared destined to strike first when Shoemaker delivered a line drive down the right field line that was flagged down by Taylor Marchozzi, and although it appeared deep enough to plate a run, the Souderton base runner never left third.
“We knew the situation,” Hughes said. “We knew it was to go home, but we didn’t tag when we were supposed to.“We had everything in place. Olivia knew where she was going to put the ball, and she did what she was supposed to do. I think it was a loss of mental focus.”
The Maidens capitalized in their next at-bat. Sergas was safe on an error to lead off the sixth and immediately stole second. Steph Farrar followed with a line shot down the left field line for a ground rule double that plated Sergas, and the Maidens were on the scoreboard.
“Bad things are going to happen in softball,” Hughes said. “We have to mentally get it together to go out there the next inning, but we’re not there yet.”
Parkins escaped without further damage, but the Maidens weren’t finished yet.
Pinch hitter Melissa Ferdock beat out an infield single to open the seventh.
“They key to the inning was Missy Ferdock getting on base with her speed,” Maiden coach Rick Torresani said.
Ferdock moved up to second on Jess Mower’s sacrifice bunt, and after the Maidens put another runner on board after a wild pitch-strikeout, Sergas stepped to the plate and roped a double to center that plated a pair and put the Maidens on top 3-0.
“We needed those runs,” Sergas said. “A one-run lead is like 0-0. It was still a close game even with three runs.”
And it got even closer in the seventh, but with a rainbow serving as a backdrop, the Maidens struck gold when Campbell delivered the game-saving play.
“Alyssa made a great play at the end,” Torresani said. “We try and get her during practice to dive, dive, dive, and she doesn’t.“Off the bat, I thought it was done – it might have been a double. Her play on that was unbelievable, but you know what - seniors are supposed to make great plays.”
While the Indians fell to 1-3 in league play, the Maidens improved to 3-1.
“This was two very very, very good teams, and nobody wanted to lose,” Torresani said. “There was great pitching and timely hitting from both teams. We happened to get lucky and got three runs, and they only got two. Souderton always comes back and plays hard.
“What we wanted to do was go into the seventh inning like we did today and not give up the lead. We lost to them last year in the seventh inning, and we lost to CB West and CB East the exact same way – we were winning 2-0 and 3-0 going into the seventh inning and lost. I told them in the huddle - now the jinx is over.”
The Indians, meanwhile, will try to get back on the winning track when they travel to Central Bucks East on Monday.
“This was a rough game for all of us, but we can definitely pick it up on Monday and come out and have a strong game – take the frustrations and anger of this game into Monday,” Shoemaker said.
NORTH PENN 3, SOUDERTON 2
North Penn: Mary Ward 3b 3 1 1 0; Miranda Sergas c 4 1 1 2; Steph Farrar 1b 4 0 1 1; Ayssa Campbell 2b 2 0 0 0; Steph Kulp cf 3 0 0 0; Taylor Marchozzi rf 2 0 0 0; Michelle Holweger lf 3 0 0 0; Christie Mallozzi dh 2 0 0 0; Melissa Ferdock ph 1 1 1 0; Jess Mower ss 1 0 0 0; Kellianna Bradstreet p 0 0 0 0. TOTALS 25 3 4 3.
Souderton: Olivia Shoemaker 2b 4 0 1 2; Sarah Derstine lf 4 0 0 0; Alex Faccenda 1b 3 0 0 0; Mollie Burrell c 3 0 2 0; Corrine Stiles cr 0 0 0 0; Liz Sowers dp 3 0 0 0; Alycia Stiles ss 3 0 0 0; Elysha Sowers 3b 3 0 1 0; Moira Golden rf 1 0 0 0; Brittany Beeber ph 1 0 1 0; Taylor Yoder cf 3 1 2 0. TOTALS 28 2 7 2.
North Penn 000 001 2 3-4-1
Souderton 000 000 2 2-7-2
E-NP 1, S 2. LOB-NP 7, S 6. 2B-Farrar, Sergas. 3B-Shoemaker. SB-Ward 2, Sergas, Marchozzi. SAC-Mower.
IP H R ER BB SO
Souderton
Parkins (L) 7 4 3 2 4 9
North Penn
Bradstreet (W) 7 7 2 2 1 4
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