Continental Conference
Hatboro-Horsham 3, Central Bucks South 2
Val Sadowl had a little score to settle.
The Hatboro-Horsham junior – who had not hit the ball out of the infield in her three previous at-bats in Tuesday’s showdown against South – stepped to the plate with the bases loaded and one out in the seventh of a 2-2 game.
It was Sadowl’s chance for redemption.
“I’ve been working on my hitting a lot recently,” she said. “I was focused on bringing Melissa (Spinosa), who was on third, home. I wasn’t focusing on what I’d done in my past at-bats.”
Those past at-bats were quickly forgotten when Sadowl hit a ball over the head of South’s drawn-in outfield, allowing Spinosa to score the game winner and guaranteeing the Hatters at least a share of the Continental Conference crown.
“It’s really a good feeling to be able to come back and put everything we have on the field and go one game at a time,” Spinosa said. “It just feels good to come back this year and do what they did to us last year.”
Sadowl had a little more incentive in her final at-bat after watching the defending conference champion Titans intentionally walk both Julie Wambold and Danielle DiFilippo to load the bases after Spinosa advanced to third with one out.
“That got me pretty fired up before I went up to bat knowing they thought I’d do what I did my first at-bat,” Sadowl said of her inning-ending double play in the first inning.
There would be no reruns this time around as Sadowl delivered the game’s biggest blow.
“Lately, we have been working so well together as a team, and I knew we would find a way eventually,” Sadowl said. “If it wasn’t me – I knew it was going to be someone else.
“The captains got us all fired up knowing how much we wanted this game. We just went in and did everything we could. Melissa did a good job of starting it by getting on base right away.”
South coach Jenn Robinson wasn’t second guessing her decision to load the bases, although she acknowledged it put her team in a tough spot.
“We had our outfield playing in – we had to,” the Titans’ coach said. “These games are going to come down to things like sacrifice bunts, hits in clutch situations with two outs.
“If you think about it, when we played them the first time, we were winning 1-0, and they tied it up in the seventh. They’re good hitters. Sadowl came up, and she hadn’t had a great game. We took a chance and walked the two girls before her, and she stepped up just like Kelly Culp stepped up in the top of the seventh.
“You have a team that can hit top to bottom, and big players make big plays when it counts. Our players did the same thing. It’s just the timing.”
The Hatters could have hung their heads going into the bottom of the seventh after watching a 2-0 lead evaporate in the top of the final inning, but Spinosa made sure they didn’t, opening the bottom of the seventh with a single that got past the outfielder, allowing her to advance to second base.
“All I was trying to do was get on base and make something happen,” the Hatters’ lead-off batter said. “I knew our three-four hitters were coming up, and I just had to get on base, and they would hit me in.
“I was just trying to make contact and get on base.”
When Chrissy James laid down her second sacrifice bunt of the game, Spinosa – who represented the winning run – was on third with one out, and sometimes it’s the little things that make all the difference.
“If Chrissy didn’t do that, I would have been on second, but that moved me around,” Spinosa said. “Those things help a lot.”
Earlier, the Hatters jumped out to a 2-0 lead. They plated a single run in the third. Julie Wambold – who doubled and moved up to third on an error – scored on Danielle DiFilippo’s suicide squeeze. In the fourth, Spinosa doubled and moved up to third on a sacrifice by James, and Wambold followed with an RBI single.
Down but not out, the Titans battled back in the seventh. With one out, Morgan Decker drew a walk, and Haileigh Stocks stroked a double to the fence in left center. A popup to short for the inning’s second out was only a temporary reprieve as Kelly Culp – who is 4-for-6 against the Hatters in the two games combined – delivered a single that plated a pair.
That tie was short-lived as the Hatters answered with the game winner in the bottom of the inning.
Maggie Shaffer earned the win for the Hatters, allowing five hits while striking out eight and walking one.
With Fran Carrullo absent from Wednesday’s practice because of illness, Robinson gave the starting nod to Stocks, who went the distance.
The Hatters close out their regular season on Monday when they will travel to North Penn.
“We’re still going to come out fired up,” Sadowl said.
The Titans, meanwhile, return to action on Friday when they will host Souderton. The two teams are deadlocked in second place in the conference standings with identical 9-3 records.
Souderton 2, North Penn 1
The Indians, according to coach Courtney Hughes, have been onto something magical recently.
“Coach T (Bob Tybring) and I were talking, and we said there’s definitely just magic this year,” the Indians’ coach said. “The girls have so much confidence, and they don’t give up.
“It’s different people stepping up and just knowing we can do it as a team.”
Stepping up for the Indians on Thursday was junior Lauren Urbanski, who – with a runner on second, two outs in the seventh and the Indians trailing 1-0 – lofted a towering drive over the center field fence for a walk-off home run that stunned the Maidens and sent the jubilant Indians into a frenzy.
“My coach always tells me to lay off the high ones, but I saw my favorite high one, and I just swung, and it was gone,” Urbanski said. “I felt it right off the bat.
“I felt it hit the sweet spot on the bat. It was gone.”
For Urbanski, it was a rerun of a round tripper that doomed Central Bucks East earlier in the season.
“It looked just like the one she hit against East,” Hughes said. “She likes those high pitches, and then she skies them.
“She keeps telling me, ‘Coach, those are the ones I hit.’ It’s true.”
Urbanski’s seventh-inning heroics were set up when Haley DeLaney drew a four-pitch walk to lead off the inning. The walk marked the end of Kellianna Bradstreet’s day on the mound.
“She said she was done,” Maiden coach Rick Torresani said of his mound ace, who had allowed just two hits. “She said she didn’t have anything left. Once a pitcher tells you that, you can’t leave her in.”
The Indians, it turns out, were none too upset to see Bradstreet leave the game.
“She pitched a great game against us,” Hughes said. “She was getting a little wild at the end, and we were going to take a lot more pitches that inning if Bradstreet had stayed in.”
With Bradstreet gone, Hughes had a simple message for her players – hit the ball.
“We didn’t really see the same movement, and they were just excited for a different look,” the Indians’ coach said. “That’s why they went up there with a little different body language.”
In the absence of back-up pitcher Vicky Tumasz (family trip), Torresani handed the ball to Lauren Hess. Liz Parkins greeted her with a sacrifice bunt that moved pinch runner Amanda Brush to second, and when Hess fanned the next batter she faced, it looked as though the Maidens might escape with the big win.
Urbanski had other ideas.
“I just thought, ‘We can’t give up,’” she said. “I just had to go up there, take a breather, relax, believe in myself and just try to get a little hit to get those runs in.”
The Indians’ junior third baseman got more than a little hit, and she chased a pitch out of the strike zone to do it.
“It felt great,” Urbanski said of her game-winning home run. “I needed it.
“I’ve been in a little bit of a slump, but I got it back.”
At least one of Urbanski’s teammates was thinking home run when she stepped into the box.
“I honestly was thinking – she’s going to hit a walk-off,” Parkins said. “She’s done it before, and I know she can do it. I knew if she wasn’t going to get a home run, she would score Amanda and tie it up.
“When she hit it, I was jumping up and down. We were all screaming and running to home plate.”
On this day, the Indians’ joy was the Maidens’ heartbreak.
“It’s very disappointing – you go to two outs and the girl hits a home run on a pitch that was up and out,” Torresani said. “But they deserved it. They came through and won the game.”
The Maidens managed just three hits off of Parkins, who fanned 10 and walked three while propelling the Indians to their ninth straight win.
“She’s an amazing pitcher,” Urbanski said. “She’s got a lot of movement on her pitches, and she’s working hard. I’ve never seen a pitcher as great as her.”
Although the Maidens – after a few early strikeouts – laid off of Parkins’ deadly rise, the senior hurler still was in complete command.
“We were just keeping them guessing, keeping them off balance,” Parkins said. “Mollie (Burrell) was going up and down, in and out and off-speed too. That was definitely a huge help today.”
It looked as though the Indians’ magical run might be over when the Maidens plated an unearned run in the top of the seventh to break a scoreless tie, capitalizing on a walk, an Indian error and freshman Erin Maher’s RBI single. Maher accounted for two of her team’s three hits off Parkins.
The Maidens might have gotten more, but they had a base runner thrown out trying to advance to third by catcher Mollie Burrell.
“When we had chances, we made mistakes, and you can’t do that at this level if you want to compete,” Torresani said. “Things happen, but we have to do a better job of hitting.”
As a result of their win, the Indians have a two-game lead over the fourth place Maidens, who fell to 9-5 in the league.
“We’re getting close to playoffs, and this is sealing the deal that we’ll get in,” Parkins said. “We just have a great group of girls. A lot of us play travel together, and everything is working well.”
“They don’t stop believing,” Hughes said. “They know bad things will happen, but they just keep playing through it. That’s all you can ask.
“It was a great game, it really was. It was exciting. You don’t want that last inning (when the Maidens scored an unearned run) to be the one that sticks in your mind. To be able to come in and hit – they didn’t give up.”
Quakertown 4, Central Bucks East 3
The Panthers had themselves quite a Senior Night celebration on Thursday, earning a hard-fought 4-3 win over the Patriots in a game that saw them play error-free softball.
“They’re a good team,” coach Rich Scott said of East. “I have been telling our girls – it’s about making the least amount of mistakes.
“We had zero errors, and when you make no mistakes, you have a chance to win against any team. We were errorless, and that was huge. We had great defensive plays in the field and just hit the ball.
“I pumped them up as much as I could. I said, ‘Win it for the seniors because they deserve it.’ I knew we were capable as long as we didn’t make mistakes.”
Appropriately, all three of the team’s seniors played starring roles in the big win.
Rachel Rice was 3-for-3 with three RBIs – all of which came when she delivered a bases-clearing double in the third that spotted the Panthers a 3-1 lead. Senior Steph Zischang was 2-for-2 with an RBI while senior Justyna Pepkowski earned the win on the mound, allowing three runs and eight hits while fanning four.
“All of them are great team leaders,” Scott said. “They want to win, and they teach the younger players.
“They have been huge and have been very instrumental in the couple of wins we have had.”
Kaylynn Johnson led the Patriots with a 2-for-3 effort at the plate. Julia Schoenewald hit a solo home run in the fourth inning. Jess Haug and Sarah Decker both contributed RBIs.
With the win, the Panthers improved to 3-10 in league play (4-11 overall) while the Patriots fell to 6-7 in the league (10-7 overall). The Panthers will close out the season on Monday night when they will travel to Pennridge for a night game.
American Conference
Wissahickon 10, Upper Dublin 4
Katie Ziegler fanned 13 and did not walk a batter while allowing just four hits to lead the Trojans to the win over their neighboring rival. The win assured Wissahickon of at least a tie for the American Conference title with just one game remaining on its league schedule.
Gretchen Guaglianone contributed a triple and drove in a pair of runs for the Trojans while teammate Marina Mellor had a double and two RBIs. Karen Laksh and Rachel Philbin also had doubles for the Trojans. Ziegler helped her own cause with a single and RBI. Alex Comonitski and Emma Goodrich also had hits.
For the Flying Cardinals, Shannon Bolger - who had a double - and Nicole Morran each contributed a pair of RBIs. Ashleigh Sharp, Rachel Mintz and Becky Starosta each had a single. Mintz absorbed the loss on the mound for the Flying Cardinals.
While Upper Dublin saw its record drop to 2-8 in the league (3-12 overall), the Trojans improved to 9-2 in the league and 12-4 overall.
Plymouth Whitemarsh 9, Upper Merion 1
The Colonials pounded out 16 hits while the Vikings managed just two off the duo of Erica Miller and Gabby Stamler as PW celebrated Senior Day with the big win over their neighboring rivals. Miller worked five scoreless innings to open the game, allowing one hit while striking out eight and walking a pair. Stamler threw two innings of one-hit ball, allowing one run while striking out one.
“My dad has always taught me about scouting teams,” coach Dana Moyer of her father, assistant coach Moo Moyer. “We did a really good job of scouting them the first time around, picking up their hitting tendencies, and I call the pitches around those things.
“We were ready for them. Our pitchers have been just amazing the second part of the season, just hitting their spots, good velocity and switching up their speeds a lot. I couldn’t be happier with the job both our pitchers are doing.”
The Colonials sent eight batters to the plate and scored five runs in the second and added three more in the fourth before the Vikings got on the scoreboard with a single run in the sixth. PW answered with two runs in the bottom of the inning to close it out.
Senior catcher Alexa Borkowski was 3-for-4 with a triple, one RBI and two runs scored. Sophomore Jordan Katz also was 3-for-4 with a double and two RBIs. Junior Jen Lurty was 2-for-2 with one RBI while Tori Barattucci, Corinne Watson, Laura Berman and Amanda Whalen each contributed base hits.
“I’m ecstatic,” Moyer said. “Up and down the lineup – I don’t think there’s one person that didn’t contribute in one way or the other.
“The pitching has just been phenomenal. They put the time in, and it shows.”
While the Vikings fell to 6-4 in the league and 10-4 overall, the Colonials upped their record to 7-4 in the league (8-6 overall).
“Early on this season, we didn’t play so well, but it takes some time,” Moyer said. “My dad kept me grounded and kept saying – it’s going to take some time for them to learn the new system, and it’s going to take some time for them to buy into what we’re selling.
“They finally did, and things just started turning around. They’re the ones that have to stand up there and make the adjustments. They’re the ones going to the plate, and they have been doing it. The credit goes to them. I kind of have the easy job.”
National Conference
Neshaminy 7, Harry S. Truman 4
Dave Chichilitti wasn’t talking about his team’s win after Thursday’s Senior Day game at Truman was over, but rather, the Redskins’ first-year coach was tipping his hat to Truman coach Gretchen Cammiso.
“In all my years of assisting at Bristol and coaching this year, I’ve never seen a coach do what Gretchen did today,” the Redskins’ first-year coach said. “She took her time and her own money to figure out who my seniors were and gave them a flower and honored them too. It was awesome.
“I thought that was pure class. It speaks volumes about what she’s doing for that program, and her kids responded on the field as well by playing a great game. That team – in my opinion – plays in the best conference in the state, and they’re right there on that cusp battling for that fourth spot. I think they deserve to be a playoff team. I wouldn’t want to play them.”
The Tigers took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first, but the Redskins answered with two in the second and one in both the third and fourth innings to go on top 4-1. Truman trimmed that lead to 4-2, but the Redskins once again had an answer, going on top 7-1 before the Tigers – sparked by Ashley Black’s double - came to life in the seventh.
Brianna Guidos was 3-for-4 with three RBIs while teammate Laura Altenburger was 3-for-4 with two RBIs to lead the Redskins. Julia McGovern was 2-for-3 with an RBI and a run scored, and Lauren Quense hit a towering home run to lead off the seventh that, according to Chichilitti, cleared the fence by 30 feet.
Sarah McGowan earned the win on the mound, scattering five hits in seven innings while allowing three earned runs.
Council Rock North 10, Bensalem 0 (5 innings)
Sophomore Dom Pinto upped her remarkable hitting streak to 16 games, turning in a 3-for-4 performance with two doubles to lead the Indians to the abbreviated five-inning win.
Teammate Alyssa Smith contributed a double, and Morgan Lewis earned the win on the mound, fanning eight.
Wednesday, May 12, 2011
Norristown 10, Abington 1
The Eagles pounded out 20 hits and sent 45 batters to the plate in Wednesday’s non-league win. Stephanie ‘Sweat’ DiNolfi and Gabbie Berry led the Eagles with four hits each. Berry had a pair of doubles while DiNolfi also had a double. Gwyn Botley helped her own cause with three hits. Sara Rosetti, Taylor Copestick and Brie Kennedy each added two hits, and Julia Santoro, Sammi Kidd and Gina Pellechio all had one hit.
Pellechio, Copestick and DiNolfi, according to coach Jon Kandrick, ‘flashed the leather’ on defense with numerous putouts.
Botley earned the win on the mound, striking out five and walking just one while allowing seven hits.
Central Bucks East 9, Central Bucks West 2
Julia Schoenewald led the Patriots with a 3-for-4 day at the plate, which included a double. Jess Haug was 3-for-5 with a double, and Laura Murray had a pair of singles. Allie Chase added a pair of singles, and Kaylynn Johnson had three singles. All told, the Patriots pounded out 16 hits while the Bucks had 10.
The Patriots scored early and often, plating two runs in the first and six more in the second. They added a single run in the third to go on top 9-0 before the Bucks plated single runs in both the fourth and sixth innings.
Sierra Huckfeldt earned the win on the mound for the Patriots, and teammate Jayme Ziegler earned the save.
For the Bucks, Gina Schnecker was 3-for-3 and Carly Hurtaldo was 2-for-3 with a double.
Pennridge 13, Central Bucks West 8
The Bucks jumped out to a 5-1 lead after two innings of Thursday’s Senior Night game at Pennridge, but the Rams scored six runs in the top of the third, bunching six of their 14 hits in the inning. They added two more in the fourth and four in the fifth to go on top 13-5 before the Bucks scored three times in the fifth to make it a 13-8 game.
Emily Mayhew earned the win on the mound, allowing five hits while striking out two and walking none in four innings. Paige DeCew tossed the final three innings, allowing two runs on five hits while walking one and fanning one. All five of West’s runs were unearned.
While the Bucks fell to 1-12 in league play (5-13 overall), the Rams improved to 4-9 in the league (10-9 overall).
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