Check out the results for SOL softball teams in action Friday.
American Conference
WISSAHICKON 11, UPPER DUBLIN 10 (8 innings)
The Trojans and Flying Cardinals played one of those you-had-to-see-it-to-believe-it games on Friday that proved no lead is ever safe. The Trojans eked out the win when senior Brittany Gelman lined a one-out single to right in the bottom of the eighth inning.
A whole lot happened before then. Most of it suggesting there would be no late-game heroics for the Trojans.
“It was an entertaining game,” Wissahickon coach Mike Borkowski said. “We fought through it, and we won.
“The girls worked hard. Upper Dublin threw the kitchen sink at us. They really played hard. It was a game of two teams going at it. It was a fun game.”
Early on, the Cardinals appeared to have the upper hand, jumping out to a 6-0 lead after two innings.
“We didn’t put on our best show on defense the first two innings – five errors and five (UD) hits,” Borkowski said. “It wasn’t a good combination.”
The Trojans chipped away at that lead and tied it up with two runs in the bottom of the seventh, capitalizing on a bunt single Jackie McLaughlin, a Halle Segal single, Destini Paige’s sacrifice fly and an RBI groundout by Gelman.
Unfazed by the Trojans’ comeback, the Flying Cardinals scored four runs in the top of the eighth to go on top 10-6 only to watch the Trojans stage a remarkable rally in the bottom of the frame.
The rally began innocently enough when Andrea Muzerak collected a leadoff single. Hannah Genell followed with a single, and a miscue on a steal allowed Muzerak to score. McLaughlin followed with an RBI double to right center.
With one out, Michela Coleman, Paige and Gelman collected RBI singles with Gelman’s plating the game winner.
“It’s a league win, so it gives us three wins in the league standings,” Borkowski said. “I overheard Brittany (Gelman) telling one of the reporters that was covering the game that last year Wissahickon would have folded their tents and gone home after those four runs were score.
“I said to the girls, ‘Think positive.’ I was talking to the umpire, and we were joking around about dinner plans. He said, ‘I have them at 6:30 at Chick’s in Bridgeport.’ I said, ‘You’re going to make them. We’re going to win this inning,’ and we were down four. We came back and won it.
“We keep telling them all the time, ‘Positive, positive positive. Forget about it. Learn from your at-bats.’ We’re trying to put the mentality in them to make the adjustments and keep playing. That last at-bat doesn’t count now. What are you going to do to help the team win?”
All told, the Trojans pounded out 14 hits. Coleman (3-for-5, RBI), Muzerak (3-for-4), Trumbore (2-for-4, 3 RBIs) and McLaughlin (2-for-4, double, 2 RBIs) led the charge for the Trojans.
Segal earned the win in the circle.
“Halle got roughed up a little bit against Norristown the other day – she had a little trouble finding the strike zone,” Borkowski said. “Yesterday we were talking about her mechanics. Every time she walked in after an inning today, one of our coaches would say, ‘How are your mechanics?’
“It was all about mechanics. Today she threw really well. She spread out the walks and held them down with the hits. She did really well.”
With the win, Wissahickon evened its record to 3-3 in league play (4-4 overall) while Upper Dublin is 2-4 in the league (2-6 overall).
Upper Dublin 420 000 04 10
Wissahickon 000 211 25 11
Continental Conference
SOUDERTON 2, NORTH PENN 1
Steph Rummel spends a lot of time preaching the importance of forgetting the past and taking care of business in the present. Apparently, her players are paying close attention. The Indians committed a pair of errors that allowed the Maidens to plate an unearned run in the second. They didn’t let that inning or those miscues define them, rallying for a 2-1 win in a battle of two of the conference’s top squads.
“Rummel tells us to try and move on and just get over it basically – don’t stew on mistakes we’ve made,” senior Dayna Shelly said. “If we keep sitting there thinking about it, we’ll keep messing up. We just get over it, move on to the next play, be ready for the next pitch.
“It definitely works. We just let (the mistakes) go because if we don’t, it will stick with us for the whole game.”
One of the heroes of Friday’s win was freshman pitcher Alex Scheeler, who allowed just three hits and induced one ground ball after another out of the Maidens. It turns out Scheeler had more than a passing acquaintance with her opponent.
“I actually came from North Penn last year,” she said. “I tried to just throw it outside of my head and pitch like I usually do – just hit my spots.”
Scheeler was the go-to pitcher for a Penndale squad that didn’t lose a game the last two years. Her family moved, and one year later, she’s the go-to pitcher for the defending state champions and showing no signs of feeling any pressure.
“It really doesn’t bother me,” said Scheeler, who plays for Newtown Rock 18U Futures squad. “I just try to do my job.
“I did watch (the state championship game) on TV. I watched the whole thing. I was looking forward to coming here. I really wanted to win this game. I was thinking about it all day in school. I couldn’t focus.”
Scheeler also was part of the Indians’ two-run third. The rally began when leadoff batter Angie Carty lined a one-out single to left, and when’s Scheeler’s single to left got by the outfielder, Carty raced home with the tying run.
“I just wanted to put the ball in play and help my team,” Scheeler said.
One out later, Shelly delivered a single that drove in the game winner.
“It feels great to win, especially against North Penn because they’re one of our biggest competitors,” Shelly said. “We definitely have a lot of new people this year, but we’ve filled in the spots.
“Obviously, they’re different from the people we had last year, but we work well together, and that’s big.”
This year’s Indians squad – rookies and veterans alike – share a common denominator. They’re resilient, and while things won’t always go their way, they know they can bounce back.
“That’s the number one thing that I’d like to commend them for because they did make errors, but they shut it down the rest of the time,” Rummel said. “They stayed cool, calm and collected, and they did their thing. They did a great job.
“They come out wanting to win no matter who they’re playing, and that’s something that’s great about our team. They don’t ever let down. I try to talk to them about that – every single game is a big game, and we want to come out hard and keep the momentum in our favor, and we did that very well today.”
The Indians collected seven hits off North Penn mound ace Jackie Bilotti. They were led by the two-hit performances of Carty, Scheeler and Katie Kehler.
Bilotti fanned three and walked none while Scheeler also fanned three while walking one.
“She’s definitely doing great,” Shelly said of Scheeler. “She’s pitching great, she’s working hard, and she’s doing what she has to do.”
Souderton improved to 5-1 in conference play (6-2 overall) while the Maidens are 4-2 (7-2 overall).
North Penn 010 000 0 1
Souderton 002 000 x 2
CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH 7, QUAKERTOWN 5
The Panthers and Titans combined for 29 hits, and it was pitcher Maddie Decker delivering a two-run home run in the top of the first to spot the visiting Titans a 2-0 lead. The Panthers got those runs back in the bottom of the inning.
South took a 4-2 lead in the top of the third and added one more in the fourth and two in the fifth to go on top 7-2 before the Panthers tacked on one in the fifth and two more in the sixth.
“Both teams had a lot of hits,” South coach Dan Hayes said. “Their middle infield between (Spenser) Gray and (Meghan) Klee – they’re really strong up the middle. They played well.
“We are struggling with the gloves, so we gave them a couple of extra runs.”
Alex DeLeon and Meg Bradley led the Titans’ attack with 3-for-4 efforts at the plate. Decker, Taylor Marinelli and Mikaela Simons all finished the game 2-for-4. Simons delivered a two-run triple to account for the Titans’ runs in the fifth inning.
For the Panthers, Spenser Gray’s 3-for-4 performance out of the leadoff spot led the way. Lauren Beal, Maddie Calder, Meghan Klee, Hillary Scott and Nikki Vanelli each had two hits.
Decker picked up the win, but there may have been a price tag attached. She went down with an injury in the sixth inning and did not return. Sophomore Alexis McConomy closed out the game.
Central Bucks South improved to 5-1 in conference play (6-1 overall) while Quakertown is 0-6 in the league (2-6 overall).
Central Bucks South 202 120 0 7
Quakertown 200 012 0 5
National Conference
NESHAMINY 10, HARRY S TRUMAN 3
The Redskins exploded for six runs in the first inning, collecting five of their 12 hits in the frame. They never looked back.
Mackensie Compton led off with a double, and Hunter Hart followed with a single, Sam Offenback’s RBI single put the Redskins on the scoreboard. Also contributing hits in the inning were Nikki Wild and Sophie Beretski (two RBIs).
Freshman Amber Brugger improved to 6-0 on the season, allowing five hits while walking one and striking out eight in a complete game win.
Neshaminy upped its record to 5-0 in conference play (8-0 overall) while Truman is 1-5 in the league (2-6 overall).
Neshaminy 602 010 1 10-12-1
Harry S Truman 000 200 1 3-5-4
PENNSBURY 10, LITTLE FLOWER 0
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