Check out all of Monday and Tuesday’s softball results.
National Conference
WILLIAM TENNENT 6, COUNCIL ROCK NORTH 5
The Panthers upped their winning streak to four with Tuesday’s come-from-behind win over the Indians. The win avenged an early season one-run loss to Rock North and evened the Panthers record at 4-4 in league play after an 0-4 start (5-6 overall).
“It was very surprising to me early in the season that they weren’t playing up to their potential,” coach Erika Lee said. “I was very shocked.
“If you fight hard and you lose, I’m okay with that, but they weren’t playing Tennent softball at the beginning of the season. They’re playing now the way I envisioned them playing this season.
“I’m not sure what happened at the beginning of the season. Maybe they were feeling a little pressure because they were expected to be better than last year. They are just working hard, they’re playing with heart, and they’re playing with more hustle. It’s just so great.”
Sparked by Kaitlyn O’Toole’s two-run home run, the Panthers put three runs on the board in the fourth inning. Rock North used a five-run outburst in the fifth to go on top 5-3, but the Panthers battled back. Nikki Alden’s solo home run made it a 5-5 game, and Whitney Delagol’s solo blast in the sixth gave the Panthers a lead they would not lose.
“I told them you have to do this one player at a time, and that’s what they did,” Lee said. “They looked relaxed, they looked confident today.
“Council Rock North is fun to play. They’re such competitors. I feel like it’s always a good game.”
Delagol was 2-for-3 while Sara Keeny was 2-for-4 to lead the Panthers. Kaitlyn O’Toole had three RBIs.
Alden earned the win on the mound, fanning seven.
The Indians saw their record drop to 3-5 in the league (3-6 overall).
PENNSBURY 14, BENSALEM 4 (5 innings)
Christina Bascara and Suzanne Swanicke led the Falcons’ 16-hit attack with three hits each. Mackenzie Obert was 2-for-3 with a double and two runs scored. Michelle George was 2-for-4 with a double, triple and two runs scored. Dani Litwin was 2-for-3 with a double, and senior Emily Kraek added a triple.
The Falcons scored four runs in the first and single runs in both the second and third innings before exploding for six in the fourth and two more in the fifth. The Owls scored all of their runs in the fifth.
The Falcons are 7-1 in the league (10-2 overall) while the Owls are 4-3 in league play (4-6 overall).
NESHAMINY 14, HARRY S TRUMAN 0 (5 innings)
Lauren Quense continued to work her magic on the mound for the Redskins, tossing a no-hitter in the abbreviated five-inning game. The senior standout also helped her own cause with a 2-for-3 effort at the plate that included a home run.
The Redskins, who pounded out 14 hits, received big performances from Diana LaPalombara (2-for-4, double) and Julia McGovern (3-for-3, double, home run). Sam Offenback and Selina Alicea both contributed three-run home runs.
The Redskins are 8-0 in the league (9-1 overall) while the Tigers fell to 1-7 in the league (1-9 overall).
Continental Conference
PENNRIDGE 4, CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH 1
High on the list of goals of this year’s Pennridge squad was earning a win over CB South. The Lady Rams accomplished that goal with their 8-3 win over the Titans in their league opener.
“In the past couple of years, we played them some really tough games and lost a couple of heartbreakers to them,” coach Paul Koehler said. “I said to them before the game today, ‘We got them once – are we going to get them twice?’ They said, ‘That’s the plan.’
“We played really well. A couple of the kids who have been struggling with the bat came through for us today. Paige (DeCew) was on, and they couldn’t get anything going.”
DeCew scattered six hits while fanning 10 and walking none in a standout performance.
The Rams struck first in the top of the third inning when Briana Gery, who doubled to center, scored on Emily Mayhew’s two-out double to right center. In the fourth inning, Brooke Labs drew a leadoff walk, and DeCew singled up the middle. Morgan Labs followed with an RBI double. Haley Taylor delivered an RBI single to put the Lady Rams on top 3-0. The Rams might have been more, according to Koehler, but a shot by Bridget Casey hit the base runner going to second, ending the Rams’ threat.
The Titans got on the scoreboard in the bottom of the fifth on Hallie Bilker’s RBI single to make it a 3-1 game, but the Rams got that run back in the sixth when Taylor singled, advanced to second on Julia Helbing’s sacrifice bunt and scored on Gery’s single to center.
“Taylor has been struggling with the bat all year,” Koehler said. “It’s just a matter – she stopped thinking about it and was seeing the ball and hitting it. That insurance run gave us a little more breathing room.”
DeCew took care of business on the mound, closing out the game with a pair of one-two-three innings. She fanned four in that span.
Bilker and Ally Horvath led the Titans with 2-for-3 efforts at the plate. Kristyn Marinelli absorbed the loss, allowing 10 hits while striking out six and walking one.
While the Titans – whose only league losses came at the hands of Pennridge – fell to 6-2 in the league (9-3 overall), the Lady Rams improved to 5-3 in the league (8-3 overall).
“We talked about it after our North Penn game, and we said, ‘Look, we’re in a position where our season is in our own hands. We can determine what we do here. We lost three games, but we could have won all three,’” Koehler said. “The kids really have confidence in themselves that they can do this.
“To come out and take the second game from South when they hadn’t lost a league contest to anybody but us speaks volumes about the kids. Their confidence is getting stronger.”
HATBORO-HORSHAM 7, CENTRAL BUCKS EAST 4
The Hatters jumped out to a 6-0 lead before the hot-hitting Patriots got in the scoreboard.
“We hit the ball all over the place,” said coach Joe DiFilippo, whose team had 13 hits.
The Hatters plated a run in the first inning when Jenn Cader, who led off the game with a triple, scored on Maria Spinosa’s RBI single. They added a single run in the fourth when sophomore Jackie Locke, who was just called up from jayvee, collected her first varsity hit – an RBI single.
In the fifth, the Hatters tacked on two more runs, and in the sixth, Cader – who had a big day at the plate – delivered a home run that put the Hatters on top 6-0. The Patriots scored three runs in the bottom of the sixth and the teams exchanged runs in the seventh.
Cader finished the day 3-for-4 with a triple, home run and two RBIs. Carlie Johnson also had a huge day at the plate, going 3-for-4 with a pair of doubles, two RBIs and a run scored. Locke was 2-for-4 with an RBI, and Spinosa also was 2-for-4.
“When you play on their field, they have no fence, so you play 200 out there, and everything becomes long fly balls,” DiFilippo said. “Not having a fence is just as much a disadvantage to them as it is to everybody that plays there.”
Nicole Casagrand earned the win on the mound, allowing seven hits.
The Hatters are alone atop the conference standings with a 7-1 mark (10-1 overall) while the Patriots fell to 5-3 in the league (9-3 overall).
QUAKERTOWN 11, CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 8
Maddie Mulhall had a huge day at the plate for the Panthers, contributing a double, triple and a game-high four RBIs. Brittny Buonanno-Taylor was 3-for-4 while Jess Cramp was 2-for-4 with two RBIs and Spencer Gray was 2-for-3 with one RBI.
“We have some hitters in the lineup, and we have been playing well,” coach Rich Scott said. “When we play good defense, we’re usually in one or two-run games.
“We lost to North Penn (3-2) in a game we very easily could have won. We had CB East on the ropes 3-1 in the bottom of the sixth, and just one mistake on the pitch gave them the game. It’s unfortunate we didn’t win that, but it happens.
“We have five seniors on the team, and they’re all contributing. I’m very happy with the way they’re playing.”
The Panthers are 2-6 in the league (4-6 overall) while the Bucks fell to 0-8 in the league (0-12 overall).
American Conference
UPPER MERION 20, NORRISTOWN 10
The Vikings won a slugfest to maintain their stronghold on first place in the American Conference standings.
“The ball was flying all over the place,” UM coach John Whitney said. “The ball was just jumping off the bats. I don’t know what it was.”
The Vikings, who led 7-3 after five, scored 13 runs in the final two innings while the Eagles’ big inning came in the seventh when they plated five runs.
Senior captains Sarah Schunder and Anna Blackwood led the Vikings’ hit parade with four hits each. Abby Volpe had a pair of triples, and Dez Kandy, Olivia Sborlini and Micaela Ghanayem each had three hits in a game that saw the Vikings collect 25 hits.
“After the first couple of games, the girls have been hitting,” Whitney said. “I give them a lot of credit. The girls have done a great job.
“They’re staying focused and taking it one game at a time. With a young team, you worry about that a little bit, but we have good senior leadership. We have some juniors who have been on my team for three years, and all the younger kids are good ballplayers. It’s a nice mesh.”
For the Eagles, Monica Levins was 3-for-4 with a triple while Mara Sinni had a pair of doubles and a single. Brianna Kennedy had a three-run triple in the Eagles’ five-run uprising in the seventh inning.
The Vikings are 6-1 in the league (7-2 overall) while the Eagles are 6-3 in the league (7-4 overall).
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