Neshaminy fell to Spring-Ford in Thursday’s District One 6A title game. North Penn/Pennsbury photos provided courtesy of Darryl Rule of J&D Photography. Check back for a photo gallery.
District One Final
#4 SPRING-FORD 5, #11 NESHAMINY 0
“Cowgirl up”
It’s written on the Redskins’ cleats and visors, and listening to coach Tim Quense tell it, it’s time for his players to live out those words after Thursday’s loss.
“That’s been one of our mottos,” the Redskins’ first-year coach said. “It comes from the rodeo. It’s ‘cowboy up’ when you get thrown from a bronco and you land, and you’re laying there bleeding and you get back up.
“It’s time to cowgirl up.”
Thursday’s district title game did not follow the script any of the players had hoped. It was a struggle from the outset, and the Redskins never did find their offense against junior pitcher Jules Scogna.
They might have gotten an idea it was going to be a rough day when Scogna retired four of the first six batters she faced on grounders back to the circle. She struck out the other two.
The Rams got the only run Scogna would need when – with two outs in the second – sophomore Madison Peck hit a solo home run over the left field fence.
After going down in order in the first three innings, the Redskins had their first base runner when Kylie Siwek was hit by a pitch to lead off the fourth. She advanced to second on a groundout but would get no further.
In the fourth, the Rams tacked on an insurance run, benefitting from the Redskins’ lone error of the game, and in the fifth, senior Bri Peck ripped a two-run home run over the center field fence – her second round tripper in as many games – to give the Rams a 4-0 lead.
“Trying to call pitches for some of those girls was pretty hard,” senior catcher Dani Monaco said.
With two outs in the sixth, Kylee Jones collected the team’s first hit – an infield single.
“We were hyped the whole game – we just struggled to hit her,” Jones said of Scogna.
In the seventh, Mia Barone grounded a one-out single to right, and Monaco followed with a single to shallow left, but Scogna retired the next two batters she faced to close it out.
“I think it’s a learning experience to play a team like this because they had everything,” Barone said. “They had pitching, fielding, hitting – they had it all. They’re probably the best team in this whole thing, but we started to come back.”
Scogna allowed just three hits – two infield singles – in the complete game shutout, striking out five (only one after the first three innings).
“I think it was just because she was throwing outside – we just weren’t aggressive, and we weren’t how we normally are,” Kylie Siwek said. “We’re going to learn from this.”
“We were making contact – it just wasn’t solid contact,” Barone said. “I think every girl put the bat on the ball, but they just weren’t getting through.
Neshaminy (18-6, 12-4 SOL) will face District 3 runner-up Chambersburg in Monday’s PIAA 6A Tournament opener. Chambersburg fell to Warwick 10-2 in the district title game.
Neshaminy 000 000 0 0-3-1
Spring-Ford 010 121 x 5-7-0
District One 6A playback (Fifth place)
#2 NORTH PENN 6, #1 PENNSBURY 0
Mady Volpe turned in another stellar outing in the complete game shutout, and the Knights made effective use of the long ball in Thursday’s playback game for seeding.
It took no time at all for them to get on the scoreboard as sophomore Sarah Sabocsik hit a 1-2 pitch over the right field fence for a solo home run and a 1-0 North Penn lead in the top of the first.
Two innings later, the Knights all but put the game out of reach with a four-run outburst. Julia Shearer’s one-out double got the ball rolling, and after Sabocsik drew a walk, Annabelle Smink followed with a single to left that plated Shearer. That brought Gianna Cimino to the plate, and the Knights’ cleanup batter emptied the bases with one swing of her bat, delivering a three-run blast to left field that put the Knights on top 5-0.
In the fifth, North Penn added an insurance run when Volpe lined a two-out single to left that scored Sabocsik, who had walked, for the 6-0 final.
Volpe, the lone Knight with multiple hits, was 2-for-3 with an RBI. For the Falcons, who stranded eight base runners, Rowan Mulholland was 2-for 3.
Volpe scattered five hits, struck out 13 and walked just one in the shutout win. Ainsley McClue absorbed the loss.
In Monday’s opening round of the PIAA 6A Tournament, North Penn (22-2, 15-1 SOL) will face the winner of the District 11 title game pitting Northampton against Whitehall. Pennsbury (21-3, 16-0) will take on District 3 champion Warwick in Monday’s opening round.
North Penn 104 010 0 6-6-0
Pennsbury 000 000 0 0-5-0
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