North Penn and Pennsbury will be in action in Monday’s opening round of the PIAA 6A Tournament.
#1-2 NORTH PENN vs. #11-2 WHITEHALL (Hatboro-Horsham, 12 noon)
North Penn
- 21-2 overall
- 11-1 SOL Continental Conference champions
- Knights have outscored their opponents 139-35
- Sophomore Mady Volpe is 20-2 with a 1.18 earned run average. In 136.2 innings she has struck out 234 and walked 38.
- Dangerous lineup features senior second baseman Jordan Pietrzykoski (.486, 36 hits, 23 RBIs, 5 home runs, 28 runs), junior catcher Amanda Greaney (.411, 30 hits, 22 RBIs, 6 home runs, 21 runs), senior first baseman Elia Namey (.403, 29 hits, 18 RBIs, 5 home runs, 20 runs), & junior shortstop Victoria Juckniewitz (.338, 24 hits, 23 runs, 10 BB).
How they got here: After an opening round bye, North Penn, the second-seeded team in the District 1 6A Tournament, defeated #15 Upper Darby 9-0 and then notched an 11-1 mercy rule win over #7 Haverford in the quarterfinals. The Knights defeated #3 Pennsbury 4-0 in the semifinals before falling to #4 Downingtown West 3-2 in the district title game.
Liberty
- 15-10 overall
- 10-6 EPC Skyline Division
- Outfielder Megan Hutter and second baseman/East Stroudsburg commit Rachel Arner – a converted lefty slapper – were first team All-EPC selections while first baseman Lindsey Gawrys earned second team recognition.
- Top run producers are Gawrys (24 RBIs), Hutter (19 RBIs), Madi Cunningham (18 RBIs), Abigail Reese (18 RBIs) and Mackenzie Laub (15 RBIs).
- Cunningham’s eight wins leads the Zephyrs in the circle.
How they got here: Sixth-seeded Whitehall rallied from a 5-0 deficit to defeat Nazareth in the District XI quarterfinals. In a semifinal game, Whitehall defeated second-seeded Northampton 8-6 before falling to Parkland 6-0 in the district title game.
Will face: The winner of the North Penn-Whitehall game will face the winner of the 3-1 Central Dauphin versus 7-2 North Allegheny contest.
#1-4 PENNSBURY vs #2-1 HAZLETON (Drifton Softball Complex, 4:30 p.m.)
Pennsbury
- 18-4 overall
- 12-0 SOL National Conference champions
- First solo title for program since 2011
- Starting lineup anchored by seniors Sierra Daley, Carley Parsons and Karli Haines.
- Remarkable turnaround season for a Falcons squad that won just seven games last year.
- Freshman Ainsley McClure has had a stellar rookie season in the circle.
How they got here: After an opening round bye, third-seeded Pennsbury defeated #14 Central Bucks South 10-2 and then edged #7 Neshaminy 2-1 in extra innings. The Falcons fell to #2 North Penn 4-0 in the district semifinals. Pennsbury was edged by #1 Spring-Ford in the third place game.
Hazleton
- 21-2
- 12-1 Wyoming Valley Conference tied with Tunkhannock for regular season title
- Won eighth consecutive District 2 title
- Team batting average of .388 with 54 stolen bases
- Top hitters are junior Marissa Trivelpiece (.485, 33 hits, 43 RBIs, 8 SB, 3 2B, 5 3B, 11 HR, 29 runs), sophomore Julia Mrochko (.475, 38 hits, 26 RBIs, 9 SB, 7 2B, 1 3B, 8 HR, 33 runs), sophomore Olivia Wolk (.452, 33 hits, 26 RBIs, 8 SB, 9 2B, 2 3B, 3 HR, 20 runs), junior Tiana Treon (.409, 27 hits, 19 RBIs, 9 2B, 26 runs), junior Kyra Antolick (.406, 26 hits, 14 RBIs, 22 runs, 5 2B) and junior Aleah Kost (.400, 20 hits, 11 RBIs, 6 2B, 16 runs).
- Aleah Kost is 12-1 in the circle with a 1.71 ERA, 53 strikeouts and 23 walks in 82 innings. Caitlyn Katchur is 6-0 in the circle with a 0.78 earned run average.
How they got here: In the District II/IV Subregional semifinal, Hazletown defeated fourth-seeded Scranton 11-1. Hazletown downed Delaware Valley 13-2 in the District II/IV Subregional title game.
Will face: The Pennsbury-Hazleton winner will take on the winner of the 1-1 Downingtown West versus 1-6 Haverford game.
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