In a battle of the SOL National Conference’s top squads on Tuesday, Pennsbury eked out a dramatic 1-0 win in nine innings.
FAIRLESS HILLS – The dugouts on both sides of the diamond were all but deserted. The bleachers - packed with fans just moments earlier - were empty.
Pennsbury junior Mackenzie Obert, who slid across home plate with the game winner just minutes earlier, stood outside her team’s dugout, trying to convey the emotions she was feeling after the Falcons’ electrifying 1-0 win in the bottom of the ninth inning over neighboring rival Neshaminy on Tuesday afternoon.
“My heart is still pumping from the last at-bat and the slide,” Obert said. “It just feels great. They’re such a great team, we’re a great team, and it’s a battle royale out there on the field.”
In a long line of classic battles between the archrivals, Tuesday’s contest has to rank up there as one of the very best. Pitchers Val Buehler and Lauren Quense saw to that by tossing games that bordered on perfection.
Quense took a no hitter into the seventh inning while Buehler gave up a single in the first and no-hit the hard-hitting Redskins the rest of the way. All told, the two teams combined for three hits.
“I don’t remember two pitchers battling like this into the ninth inning,” Pennsbury coach Frank McSherry said. “I don’t know if Q has pitched a better game or not, but I know Val hasn’t. This was Val’s best game this year, there’s no doubt about it. I like to think this was one of Q’s best games too because she made no mistakes.
“When you get two pitchers that are pitching their best games, you expect it to go on forever.”
Julia McGovern collected a one-out single to right off Buehler in the first. It was the Redskins’ first and last hit of the game. The Falcons’ ace walked three and fanned 10 in a glittering performance.
The key to her success?
“It was just staying very focused, not showing my emotions and just pitching,” Buehler said. “You just need to keep your focus throughout the entire game. If you lose a second of focus, that can hurt you in the end.”
The Falcons never lost their focus and played all but flawless defense behind Buehler, committing only a harmless two-out error in the ninth.
Pennsbury centerfielder Michelle George delivered the defensive gem of the game when she made a dazzling catch going away of a screaming line drive off the bat of Sam Offenback to lead off the seventh inning, robbing the Redskins’ five hole hitter of extra bases.
“That was a game changer,” Buehler said. “She knew she had to get that ball, and I rely on my fielders 100 percent. I knew she was going to get that.
“That was a huge play, and I will be thanking her for the next year.”
The Falcons broke up Quense’s no-hit bid in the seventh when George collected an infield single with two outs. They won it in the bottom of the ninth, and it was Obert who got the ball rolling when she lined Quense’s first pitch of the inning into right field for a base hit.
“My sister (Kristi Lyn) came over to me and told me all I had to do was clear my mind, take my hands to the ball and just rip,” Obert said. “We both know that Lauren can pitch, we both know she brings the fire, so all you have to do is put your bat out there.”
Buehler, for one, wasn’t surprised to see her teammate deliver.
“When Obert was in the dugout, she said, ‘I will start this off,’” the Falcons’ pitcher said. “We knew from there – it was the top of the lineup, and she had it.
“There’s no worries after that. We knew we weren’t going into another inning.”
Obert advanced to second on Jess Greenwald’s sacrifice bunt and raced home when Christina Bascara’s sharp one-hopper deflected off the glove of the second baseman and into left field.
“I saw it go to the second base side, and I was just running as hard as I can,” Obert said. “I saw (coach) waving me, I didn’t hear anyone say ‘up’ or ‘down’ or anything. I just wanted to make sure I was safe at home so I slid right away.”
The loss was the first of the season for the Redskins (12-1, 7-1 SOL).
“Both pitchers were spot on,” coach Dave Chichilitti said. “Lauren threw well, Val threw well. They did a great job of keeping hitters off balance.
“There were situations early in the game where we needed a big hit, and we didn’t get it. We need to hit better than we did today.”
On a perfect spring afternoon Tuesday, Pennsbury and Neshaminy looked very much like teams whose aspirations extend well beyond a conference crown, and this was one of those rare games where every pitch really did matter, where every at-bat loomed large, and where every defensive play could be the difference between winning and losing.
“It was a great game,” said McSherry, whose team remained perfect in league play (8-0). “It’s one of those games it’s a shame somebody has to lose. You feel bad for Neshaminy because they played their hearts out.
“It is definitely a great game,” Obert said. “Lauren pitches great. She has been for two, almost three years. They are our rivals. Pennsbury-Neshaminy – it’s a big thing.
“The fans were crazy – there were so many people here. It’s awesome. I can’t wait for the 16th (of May) when we play them again.”
On the opposite side of the diamond, Quense echoed those sentiments.
“We’re looking forward to May 16,” the Redskins’ mound ace said.
If the rematch is anything close to Tuesday’s epic battle, it will be worth the price of admission and then some.
- Log in to post comments
