Check out the recaps for softball teams in action.
SOL Patriot Division
HARRY S TRUMAN 5, NESHAMINY 2
The Tigers put it all together.
For seven innings, they played flawless defense and manufactured several runs. The end result was an impressive win over the highly regarded Redskins.
“We fielded everything,” Truman coach Rick Palmer said. “Kylee (Thomas) only had two strikeouts. She just pitched to them, put it in play.
“We really focused on defense this offseason because it was a big (Achilles) heel for us last year. It killed us a lot, and we fielded everything, and we manufactured a couple of runs.”
The Tigers put a pair of runs on the board in the first. Teyana Towner and Emma Olsen drew back-to-back-to-back walks to open the inning. Both runners eventually scored with the benefit of just one hit – a single by Hannah Smith. One crossed the plate on a passed ball, the other on a wild pitch.
“It took a little bit of pressure off,” Palmer said of his team taking the early lead “We never gave up the lead. We were up by one pretty much the whole way, and then we opened it up that little bit that made the seventh inning much easier.”
Neshaminy cut the Tigers’ lead in half with a run in the bottom of the first. Amanda Slabicki and Meryn Bellacima opened the inning with back-to-back singles. Slabicki, who advanced to third on a fly ball to center, scored on a groundout by Jill Thomas.
That 2-1 score stood until the top of the fourth inning when Jess Adams, who singled, scored on a wild pitch after advancing to third on a bunt by Kaitlyn Erhard.
Again, the Redskins answered in the bottom of the inning. With two outs, Zoe Shimp legged out a bunt single and stole second. She scored to make it a 3-2 game when Kennedie Ruth grounded a single to left.
Neither team scored again until the top of the seventh. Erhard singled to left to open the inning, and one out later, Jordyn Loy singled. Erhard scored on Towner’s groundout, and Loy raced home from third on Olsen’s single to right.
Slabicki was hit by a pitch to open the bottom of the seventh, but Thomas struck out the next two batters she faced and closed out the inning and the game with a grounder back to the circle.
“Those were her first two strikeouts of the game,” Palmer said. “We changed up what we were throwing a little bit to the last few hitters. We threw a couple of changeups, a couple of screwballs.
“She lived on her screwball away, and they just kept grounding out, grounding out, lining out, popping out.”
Thomas scattered nine hits in the complete game win, striking out two and walking one. She needed just 75 pitches.
For the Tigers, the win came on the heels of a 7-2 loss to Pennsbury. The defending division champion Falcons opened up a 3-0 lead in the top of the first on their way to a 7-0 lead before the Tigers scored a pair in the seventh.
“Coming off of yesterday, we didn’t play terrible, but we had that one inning against Pennsbury,” Palmer said. “Losing a close one to Bensalem (8-7) – this makes up for that loss because we probably should have won that game, and I think it proves to them they can play with anybody.
Leading the Tigers’ seven-hit attack were Smith (2-for-3) and Adams (2-for-3, run).
For the Redskins, Ruth was 2-for-3 with one RBI.
The Tigers (2-2 SOL) didn’t have a lot of time to celebrate. They will travel to Council Rock South on Wednesday.
“I think the girls have already turned the page. I told them, ‘You got your one back, now you have to close out the week,’” Palmer said. “Eight o’clock tonight, you flip the page. Celebrate till eight. Eight o’clock we flip it.”
Neshaminy (4-2, 2-2) will be on the road at Bensalem on Wednesday.
Harry S Truman 200 100 2 5-7-0
Neshaminy 100 100 0 2-9-0
SOL Colonial Division
PENNRIDGE 2, CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 0
Averi Dockery made her first start of the season a memorable on, allowing just three hits while striking out 10 and walking one in a complete game shutout.
“Averi Dockery had a strong performance today,” Pennridge coach Wendy Iadonisi said. “She only gave up (three) hits and had 10 strikeouts - not too bad for a freshman.
“Our defense had another outstanding day only allowing one error on a hard-hit ball by Abby Lineman. I’m not sure what the official book counted it as, but we definitely thought it could have been fielded.
“We know errors are going to happen, but one of the things we are focusing on this season is not allowing one error to snowball into another. Our defense really stepped up and prevented West from taking advantage of any free bases we gave them.”
The Rams came up with a big defensive play in the bottom of the second, gunning down a runner at home plate in a scoreless ballgame.
“She was thrown out at home by Ryleigh Lilly at short,”Iadonisi said.
Pennridge got on the scoreboard in the top of the third, capitalizing on a walk as well as singles by Reagan Bauman and Katie Buccafuri.
In the bottom of the fourth, the Bucks put a pair on board, but Dockery came up with two huge strikeouts, allowing the Rams to cling to their 1-0 lead.
The Rams added an insurance run in the top of the sixth when Grace Helbling, who drew a leadoff walk, scored on a double by Catelyn Thrush. That would be the extent of the scoring for both sides.
“Offensively we struggled getting the timing down on Sienna (Lawson),” Iadonisi said of the Bucks’ pitcher. “Reagan Bauman was able to make adjustments quickly and reached base three times with two hits and a hit by pitch. Katie Buccafuri and Catelyn Thrush were both able to come up with nice RBI hits. We left runners on base and needed to make some adjustments earlier in the game, but we will take this as another good team win.”
Lawson pitched well enough to win, allowing just four hits and two runs while striking out nine and walking three.
Pennridge (3-2, 2-2 SOL) will host Central Bucks South on Wednesday, and Central Bucks West (2-4, 1-3) will travel to Souderton on Wednesday.
Pennridge 001 001 0 2-4-0
Central Bucks West 000 000 0 0-2-0
SOL Liberty Division
HATBORO-HORSHAM 6, PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH 3
The Hatters bounced back from a 4-3 loss to Quakertown 24 hours earlier, building on their seventh inning rally that made it a one-run game.
“It’s been a learning curve in a lot of ways,” HH coach Kelly Krier said. “Yesterday to fight back in that last inning and come back and score (two) runs and make a nice run was really what we wanted to see from a coaching standpoint.
“Today PW fought. They had some big hits. We were back and forth throughout the game. It was just a really good division game, yesterday’s game too was a great division game. It just shows you the talent and good pitching and great hitting. It’s exciting, it’s fun, and we’re back out tomorrow with Upper Dublin.”
The Hatters put a run on the board in the top of the first. Alyssa Tooley doubled to lead off the inning, and she scored when Kendal Leitner followed with a line drive double to left field.
In the bottom of the inning, the Colonials scored to go on top 2-1. Marissa Perez drew a leadoff walk, Lauryn Kane singled, and two outs later, Sam Skivo lined a single to right to plate a pair.
That 2-1 score stood until the top of the fourth. Megan Mills doubled to lead off the inning, and one out later she scored when Kiersten Rimer doubled to left field. A two-out error allowed another run to cross the plate, and the Hatters led 3-2.
In the fifth, Abby Waeltz tripled to center to lead off the inning, and she scored when Tess Kearney followed with a single. The Hatters added another run to go on top 5-2.
Molly Moore’s RBI single that plated Kane, who had doubled, made it a 5-3 game, but Amya Lundy’s RBI double in the sixth gave the Hatters their final margin of victory.
Mills, who was 3-for-4 with a double and run scored, found herself batting seventh after hitting out of the top of the lineup all season.
“Today we made some subtle adjustments to our hitting lineup, trying to spark a little bit,” Krier said. “Megan Mills we moved her down in the lineup and put some senior leadership in between some younger bats. Before the game, I said, ‘I moved you because I need some leadership, and I need someone to get things started,’ and she had a great game at-bat for us today. She made a couple of big plays in the field too. It was just great to see her have that moment. She stepped up when asked to.
“We’ve had some issues at the end of our lineup, just keeping things going. Megan has that experience. There were people hitting in positions they aren’t normally hitting in, but they responded, and I was very proud of our team today.”
Waeltz (2-for-4, run) and Kearney (2-for-4, run, RBI) also had multi-hit games for the Hatters.
Tooley notched the win in the circle, allowing seven hits and three runs while striking out seven and walking a pair. Leitner did not allow a hit in a scoreless seventh, striking out three and walking one.
This win, according to Krier, was a team effort.
“Alyssa Tooley did a great job on the mound today,” the Hatters’ coach said. “Abby (Waeltz) got a big hit, Amya (Lundy) got a big hit. Our sophomore right fielder, Kiersten Rimer got a big hit. Tess (Kearney) hit well.
“We just put some things together as a team, and we needed to do that. We needed to have some fun, enjoy being outside in the sun, enjoy being with each other, realizing we’re a different look than we were last year, and they responded in the seventh inning yesterday and again today. They played as a team. We’re fortunate to have players who can play in lots of different positions and move people around a bit.”
For the Colonials, Kane was 2-for-4 with a double and two runs scored, and Skivo was 2-for-3 with two RBIs.
Hatboro-Horsham (2-3, 2-1 SOL) will host Upper Dublin on Wednesday, and Plymouth Whitemarsh (1-2, 1-1) will host Wissahickon on Wednesday.
Hatboro-Horsham 100 221 0 6-11-2
Plymouth Whitemarsh 200 010 0 3-7-2
Non-league
MOUNT ST. JOSEPH 6, UPPER DUBLIN 3
The Flying Cardinals took an early 1-0 lead, but that was erased with the Mount scoring five runs in the fifth – all unearned. They never could get over the hump.
Madden Reilly and Lizzie Tambourino both had two hits. Tambourino stroked a double, and Kaeline Penna also had a double for the Cardinals.
Chloe Foster absorbed the loss, allowing six hits and six runs (one earned) while striking out nine and walking five.
Upper Dublin (1-5, 1-3 SOL) will travel to Hatboro-Horsham on Wednesday.
Mount St. Joseph 000 050 1 6
Upper Dublin 100 010 1 3
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