Check out the recaps for SOL softball teams in action Tuesday.
SOL National Conference
BENSALEM 9, COUNCIL ROCK NORTH 3
A young Owls squad took an early lead and never relinquished it. The win avenged a 4-1 loss at the hands of the Indians earlier this season.
“It’s a great group of kids we have,” coach Dan Schram said. “We have six games left, and we’re excited to play every game.”
The Owls set the tone for the game with three runs in the first, thanks to a bases-clearing double with one out by Angelia Micalizzi. The three-run double was set up after Jess Klein and Deja Seilhammer legged out back-to-back bunt singles. Allison Goodman’s single loaded the bases for Micalizzi.
“That was huge,” Schram said of going on top early. “In the game of softball, oftentimes those who score first win. It was the confidence we needed for Haley (Sauer) to get it done in the circle. Haley pitched a great game.”
The Indians plated an unearned run in the first and added two more in the fifth when Riley Sheehy hit a two-run home run. By that time, the Owls led 7-1, a lead that proved insurmountable.
Sauer earned the complete game win, allowing eight hits and three runs (two earned) with two strikeouts and no walks.
“She threw strikes, she threw all over the four corners of the strike zone,” Schram said. “We always say – you don’t throw the ball to make them miss, you throw the ball to make them hit. She was spinning the ball well. All of her pitches were working. I’m proud of Haley and I’m proud of the kids.”
Micalizzi was 2-for-3 with a double, four RBIs, two stolen bases with two runs scored. Goodman was 3-for-4 with three runs scored.
“Allison Goodman hit the ball well and was a leader on the field,” Schram said.
Maddie Buechner’s two run single highlighted a three-run third for the Owls, who, scored three runs on squeeze plays. Freshman Jess Klein was 3-for-4 as well.
“Jess made great plays at second base and really ran the bases well today,” Schram said. “We’re doing pretty good offensively, we struggle defensively.
“It was our game plan today to make them make the plays with a little bit of small ball.”
Schram started three freshmen – Maddie Buechner (first base), Jess Klein (second base) and Mackayla Edwards (right field).
“They played great ‘D’ and executed on offense,” the Owls’ coach said.
The Indians are seeded 13th in the latest District One 6A power rankings.
Bensalem (5-8, 2-7 SOL) will travel to Conwell-Egan for a non-league game on Saturday, and Council Rock North (7-6, 3-5) will host Abington on Friday.
Bensalem 303 100 2 9
Council Rock North 100 020 0 3
COUNCIL ROCK SOUTH 2, HARRY S TRUMAN 1
It was another day and another walk-off win for the streaking Golden Hawks, who 24 hours earlier scored four runs in the bottom of the seventh to earn the come-from-behind win over William Tennent.
This time the Golden Hawks and Tigers were deadlocked 1-1 heading into the bottom of the seventh.
“Olivia Zoldi had a hard hit ground ball that handcuffed the shortstop, and she beat the throw,” coach Frank Marino said of the pivotal seventh. “Then we had another hard hit ball to short by Danielle Walters – she recovered to make the throw to first, and it got past first base, so our lead runner was able to round third and score.”
Earlier, the Hawks got on the scoreboard in the bottom of the second. Makenna Diamond and Ally Kirschner led off the inning with back-to-back singles. Devon Bradley’s sacrifice bunt advanced both runners. With runners on second and third, Mackenzie Marino lined out to second.
“They tried to get the runner coming off of second to turn a double play, but she dove back in time,” Marino said. “While that was happening, I had Makenna Diamond tag up at third, so we stole a run there.”
The Tigers got that run back in the top of the fifth, benefitting from a pair of South miscues.
Walters earned the win, allowing just two hits while striking out 10 and walking two.
“Danielle did well again in the circle,” Marino said. “She had a nice night.
“The errors have made some of these games closer. I tell the girls – every game someone may make an error. That’s going to happen, but that doesn’t really define our character. What defines it is what we do afterwards. They’ve kind of rallied behind that. They stick together, trust each other and believe in each other.
“It’s their second walk-off in as many nights, so they’re having fun, they’re having a lot of fun.”
Kirschner was 2-for-3 to lead the Golden Hawks, who had just five hits.
The Golden Hawks are 11th in the latest District One 6A power rankings and the Tigers are 22nd.
Council Rock South (9-3, 5-2 SOL) will host Methacton in a non-league game Thursday, and Harry S Truman (6-6, 4-3) will face Bristol in the opening game of the Lower Bucks Softball Night doubleheader on Thursday at Bristol Boro Memorial Field at 5 p.m.
Harry S Truman 000 010 0 1
Council Rock South 010 000 1 2
NESHAMINY 7, ABINGTON 3
The Redskins continued their march through conference play, plating an unearned run in the top of the third and never relinquishing their lead the rest of the way.
“Abington’s a scrappy team, and they always play us tough. I think the heat and the worst walk in softball – the three-mile walk down to the field – tired us out a bit,” coach Dave Chichilitti said jokingly of the long trek from the parking lot to the field. “We were happy that the whole team played clean defense today.”
The Redskins – sparked by singles from Amanda Kurtz and Paige Metz as well as a double by Hallie Duffy – scored two runs in the fourth inning. The Ghosts got on the scoreboard in the bottom of the inning to make it a 3-1 game, but the Redskins plated two in the fifth. Natalie Rios, who doubled with one out, scored when Liana Jones hit a triple, and Amanda Kurtz followed with an RBI single to put the Redskins on top 5-1 on their way to the win, the team’s 14th of the season.
Rios (3-for-5) and Kurtz (3-for-4) led the Redskins, who also received a two-hit effort from Olivia Fee.
Brooke Clewell’s 3-for-3 showing led the Ghosts.
The Redskins are third in the latest District One 6A power rankings.
Neshaminy (14-1, 8-0 SOL) will face Pennsbury at 7 p.m. in the nightcap of the Lower Bucks Softball Night doubleheader on Thursday at Bristol Boro Memorial Field. Abington (3-8, 1-7) will travel to Council Rock North on Thursday.
Neshaminy 001 222 0 7-13-0
Abington 000 100 2 3-6-2
SOL Continental Conference
CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH 1, CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 0
Kylie Kenney was on top of her game. And that might be an understatement.
The Titans’ ace allowed just two hits in a complete game masterpiece, striking out 14 and walking three.
“I keep saying after games – that’s the best game she’s thrown this season, but tonight topped them all,” South coach Kevin Rosini said. “They had runners on first and third two outs in the first and couldn’t score. They had a runner on second with one out in the fifth and couldn’t score. She’d get the strikeouts.
“She did a really good job. She mixed her pitches up really well, she spotted her pitches well. The last time we played them they got a few hits off of her. Tonight they just couldn’t.”
This was one of those games neither team deserved to lose. Angelina Sherba tossed a gem of her own for the Bucks, allowing four hits and one run while striking out 13 and walking one in six innings
“Angelina threw an amazing game herself,” Rosini said.
The Titans scored the game’s only run in the bottom of the sixth. With two outs and nobody on, Maddie Rowley tripled to center, and Alex DeLeon followed with a single that plated the game winner.”
The Titans played their second 1-0 game in as many weeks. This one took just 69 minutes, five minutes longer than the Titans’ win over Souderton by an identical score.
Central Bucks South (11-2, 6-2 SOL) will travel to Souderton on Wednesday, and Central Bucks West (7-5, 3-5) will host Central Bucks East on Thursday.
Central Bucks West 000 000 0 0-2-0
Central Bucks South 000 001 x 1-4-1
CENTRAL BUCKS EAST 2, PENNRIDGE 1
In a game that was almost a carbon copy of the initial meeting between the two teams – a 2-1 Pennridge win, Giuliana Ruscio and Kailyn Bell found themselves locked in an old-fashioned pitcher’s duel. This time it was the Patriots eking out the 2-1 win.
“The big thing for us was Giuliana came back,” East coach Karl Knapp said. “She struggled the last two games something terrible. She couldn’t find the strike zone to save her life.
“She came out today and was just on like a champ. We can’t win if she doesn’t pitch good. Just like the first game – both pitchers were really on today. One earned run apiece. Both teams had runners in scoring positions at times, but the pitchers either struck you out or got a groundout or fly out.”
Ruscio allowed seven hits and one run, fanning six and walking one. Four of her strikeouts came to close out an inning – three of those with runners in scoring position.
“I just can’t say enough about how good she pitched today,” Knapp said. “It was like a 180-degree turnaround from what she’d done in the last two games. As well as we can hit, we just can’t win if she’s not on.”
The Patriots got on the scoreboard with a run in the third when Amanda Plocharski, who had doubled, scored on an errant throw. The Rams knotted the score in the top of the fourth. Morgan Henry, who singled, scored on a groundout by Victoria Moscariello.
In the bottom of the inning, Ruscio was hit by a pitch to lead off the frame and advanced to second on a sacrifice by Steph Kuhns. She crossed the plate with a run that turned out to be the game winner when Bailey Schellhorn singled to center.
In the sixth, the Rams had runners on second and third with one out after Emily Hegen doubled, but Ruscio escaped unscathed, coaxing a liner to short for the inning’s second out and a fly ball to center to retire the side.
“It was a good win,” Knapp said. “If we can do it again Wednesday and Thursday, I think we’ll be back in the playoff picture.”
The Patriots are 24th in the latest District One 6A power rankings while the Rams are 18th.
Collecting multiple hits for the Patriots were Tara Harper (2-for-4) and Schellhorn (2-for-3) while Henry (2-for-3, 2B, run) was the lone Ram with more than one hit.
Central Bucks East (5-7, 4-5 SOL) will travel to Hatboro-Horsham for a non-league game on Wednesday, and Pennridge (6-6, 3-4) will host Souderton on Thursday at 6:30 p.m.
Pennridge 000 100 0 1-7-2
Central Bucks East 001 100 x 2-7-0
NORTH PENN 6, WILLIAM TENNENT 2
The Knights and Panthers were deadlocked at two apiece after one inning. They added runs in the third, fourth and fifth innings while the Panthers did not score the rest of the way.
Leading the Knights at the plate were Emily Groarke (3-for-4, 2 runs), Elia Namey (3-for-3, 2 RBIs, run) and Courtney Neal (2-for-3, 2 RBIs, run).
For the Panthers, junior Caitlyn Mitros hit her second home run of the season over the left field fence, and junior Brianna Koonce was 3-for-3 with a solo home run over the center field fence.
Freshman Mady Volpe earned the win in the circle, allowing five hits while striking out 11 and walking just one.
North Penn (11-3, 7-2 SOL) will travel to Lansdale Catholic for a non-league game Wednesday, and William Tennent (7-8, 2-6) will be on the road at Central Bucks South on Thursday.
William Tennent 200 000 0 2
North Penn 201 120 x 6
SOL American Conference
HATBORO-HORSHAM 7, QUAKERTOWN 0
In a game with conference title implications, it was the Hatters making a definitive statement with five runs in the bottom of the first. While that might be a comfortable lead against some teams, the Panthers – like the Hatters – have shown they can put runs on the board. They scored seven in a 10-7 loss to the Hatters in the second game of the season and last year scored 21 runs in two games – 16 in a win and five in a loss.
Mikayla Fedele silenced a potent Panther offense, limiting them to just five hits over six shutout innings. Grace Daniels threw a one-two-three seventh to close it out.
“Mik put the ball where it had to be, and we made every play clean,” coach Joe DiFilippo said. “Hey, that’s the name of the game. That’s how we always survived – you play a clean game, you get decent pitching and you score a few runs.”
The Hatters turned a pair of inning-ending double plays behind Fedele.
“We practice those double plays a lot in practice, and to be able to execute them in games is really an accomplishment for us,” said Fedele. “We all knew going into this it was going to be a close game, so for us to get the runs earlier in the game really gave us a lot of confidence.”
The five-run first came after Tori Caputo retired the first two batters she faced. Alicia Tauber, Brittany Hubler and Maddie Yeager hit back-to-back-to-back singles with Yeager’s plating a run that would turn out to be the game winner.
“Once one of us got a hit, we fed off that momentum – the people in front of us were getting hits, and we wanted to keep it going,” said Tauber. “In terms of hitting, I think we have a little bit more confidence because we’ve been hitting so well the past several games, so I think that helps us when we’re up at the plate.”
“We hit in spurts,” DiFilippo said. “My three, four and five hitters are just as good as anybody’s around.”
When Logan Cummings was hit by a pitch, the Hatters had the bases loaded for Antoinette Spinosa, who drove in a pair with a single to right. It was the first of three hits on the day for the Hatters’ second baseman, who has 19 hits in her last 30 at bats in a nine-game hitting streak.
“She’s unbelievable, she’s playing unbelievable,” DiFilippo said. “She’s having a great year.”
Grace Daniels followed Spinosa with a double that plated two more runs, and just like that, the Hatters led 5-0.
“Going into the game, we always like to get an early lead,” Spinosa said. “Coach Joe was saying – we have to keep it going, we can’t stop because Quakertown is a very good team. They hit the ball a lot the last time we played them, so we had to make sure our defense was good. That’s why an early lead was definitely important.”
The Hatters plated a single run in the second when Kyleigh Dinnien , who lined a single to right to open the frame, scored on Tauber’s double to right. They added an unearned run in the sixth but managed just three hits off Caputo over the final four innings after collecting seven in the first two.
“They’re a nice team,” Quakertown coach Ray Fox said. “I think they’ll do well in districts, especially if they keep hitting. They’ve been scoring runs like crazy.
“Their catcher (Hubler) especially – she’s their toughest out, to me. I thought our pitcher threw a pretty good game.”
Collecting multiple hits in addition to Spinosa were Alicia Tauber (2-for-3, 2B, RBI, run) and Daniels (2-for-3, 2 RBIs, run). Halle Frederick doubled for the Panthers’ lone extra base hit.
The Hatters are fourth in the latest District One 6A power rankings, and the Panthers are 14th.
Hatboro-Horsham (11-1, 10-0 SOL) will host Central Bucks East in a non-league game on Wednesday, and Quakertown (9-3, 7-2) will be on the road at Cheltenham on Thursday.
Quakertown 000 000 0 0-5=2
Hatboro-Horsham 510 001 x 7-10-1
PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH 10, SPRINGFIELD TOWNSHIP 4
PW and Springfield Township were locked in a 3-3 tie after the Spartans scored three runs in the top of the third. The Colonials responded by plating a single run in the bottom of the inning and then added six more over the next two innings en route to the convincing win.
It was Peyton Baldwin’s RBI single in the third inning that proved to be the game winner. Baldwin led the Colonials with a 3-for-3 day at the plate that included two RBIs. Also collecting multiple hits for the Colonials was leadoff batter Kamryn Kropinski, who was 2-for-3 with an RBI and three runs scored. Josee Tassoni was 2-for-3 with a triple, RBI and two runs scored. Lauren Fuhrmeister doubled and drove in three runs. Jennifer Byrne added an RBI.
Mary Kate Smith had a big day for the Spartans, finishing the game 2-for-4 with a double, triple, RBI and two runs scored. Hannah Sebenick was 2-for-4 with an RBI. Gabby Gaskin singled and drove in a pair.
Allison Beausoleil earned the win for the Colonials, allowing three hits and three runs (all unearned) in five innings. She struck out four and walked one.
Plymouth Whitemarsh (6-3 SOL) will host Upper Dublin on Thursday, and Springfield Township (4-5) will travel to Upper Moreland on Thursday.
Springfield Township 003 000 1 4-7-5
Plymouth Whitemarsh 211 240 x 10-11-6
UPPER DUBLIN 17, WISSAHICKON 8
The Flying Cardinals celebrated Senior Day, and all seven of their seniors contributed to the win. The two teams were deadlocked 8-8 after the Trojans scored four runs in the top of the fourth. The Cardinals answered with a run in the bottom of the inning and then blew the game open with eight in the fifth inning.
UD sophomore outfield Korynn Bischoff had a big day both offensively and defensively. She was 3-for-4 at the plate with two doubles, three RBIs and two runs scored.
“She also threw a runner out at the plate in the top of the fifth inning,” said coach Heather Boyer. “(We were) leading 9-8, so that play prevented another tie game.
“She also ended the game on a fly-out double play on a difficult catch in left field and then caught the runner off of second base for the final out.”
Seniors contributing offensively for the Cardinals were Sarah Sharp (2-for-3, 2 RBIs, 2 runs), Brianna Parker (2-for-3, run), Erin Gallagher (RBI single) and Allie Samson (2 runs scored).
Freshman Gretchen Wolpert was 2-for-3 with a three-run triple in the first inning that plated seniors Tara McDaid, Nicole Leventhal and Lindsay Gilbert. Meghan Muth was 3-for-5 with an RBI and two runs scored, and Taylor Avery was 2-for-2 with a run scored. Bela Soriano was 2-for-2 with a three-run triple in the fifth inning and two runs scored.
For the Trojans, Macy Segal was 3-for-3 with a solo home run in the fourth. Siani Paige-Miller was 2-for-4 with two runs scored. Emma Clayborne was 2-for-3 with a double and a three-run triple in the fourth that tied the game. Ashley Radell was 1-for-3 with a three-run double in the third inning, and Claire Kunzier was 2-for-3.
Upper Dublin (4-6, 4-4 SOL) will be on the road at Plymouth Whitemarsh for the Colonials’ Senior Day on Thursday, and Wissahickon (1-11, 1-9) will travel to Hatboro-Horsham on Thursday.
Wissahickon 013 400 0 8
Upper Dublin 611 180 x 17
UPPER MORELAND 18, CHELTENHAM 3 (4 innings)
The Golden Bears scored four runs in the second inning and – after the Lady Panthers trimmed their lead to 4-3 in the top of the third – exploded for seven runs in both the third and fourth innings to bring an early end to the game.
Jocie Baumeister was 2-for-3 and hit a grand slam to highlight the seven-run third. She finished the game with five RBIs. Brianna Hughes was 2-for-3 with a home run and two RBIs. The Golden Bears were on the receiving end of 11 free passes.
For the Lady Panthers, Morgan Gianelle, who was 2-for-2, accounting for all three of her team’s runs with a home run and two-run single. Her solo home run in the first inning spotted the Lady Panthers a 1-0 lead.
“She hit an absolute bomb,” UM coach Scott Ludlow said. “I had moved my outfielders back 15 steps, and she beat them by 10 steps and then she came up the second time with the bases loaded – it was only a 4-1 game at that point, and I couldn’t really do anything with her, so, of course, she hits a two-run single to left.”
Upper Moreland (6-3, 4-3 SOL) will host Springfield Township on Thursday, and Cheltenham (0-12, 0-10) will host Quakertown on Thursday.
Cheltenham 102 0 3-3-3
Upper Moreland 047 7 18-11-2
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