Check out all of Friday's SOL softball results.
National Conference
NESHAMINY 5, BENSALEM 1
Bensalem coach Dan Schram has seen a lot of pitchers during his 10-plus years on the sidelines in the SOL. He rates Neshaminy’s Lauren Quense among the very best. The Redskins’ junior fanned 16 in a dazzling performance on Friday.
“She’s one of the best pitchers I have ever seen,” the Owls’ coach said. “The way she’s mowing batters down – it shouldn’t be that way at 43 feet.
“At 40 feet, it was like that, but it should be much more offensive at 43. She’s special, and you can see the way she approaches the game she really enjoys playing the game. When she hits the batter’s box, she dangerous there too. There’s nothing bad you can say about Q.”
The Owls actually got on the scoreboard first, taking a 1-0 lead in the second inning when they plated an unearned run. Laura Altenburger erased that lead with one swing of the bat to lead off the fourth. By the time the inning was over, the Redskins led 5-1. In the inning, Sarah Snider-Leonhauser contributed a two-run single.
“We still have that one inning,” Schram said. “Last year we would have two or three bad innings. Now we will sometimes have one inning, and we’re making about two errors a game, but we are shedding that. I wouldn’t be surprised next week if they completely go away.
“This is the first time in the two years I’ve been a head coach that I feel they’re ultra, ultra confident. Today they’re going against this power pitcher, and they’re still cheering and battling until their very last at-bat. I couldn’t ask for more.”
Schram gave the starting nod to freshman Jess Rozick, who usually plays left field for the Owls.
“She’s a talent,” Schram said. “In middle school, she and Jackie (Morell) both pitched. She’s very fast and a good base runner, and she’s a great, hard-nosed ball player. She has been key to our success all year.
“I gave her a shot on the mound today. I had to see what this kid has. I know what I have in Jackie, but I want to see if I have two pitchers.”
Rozick allowed six hits and four earned runs while walking two.
“She was a little bit slower, so it took a few innings for us to re-adjust,” Neshaminy coach Dave Chichilitti said. “They’re battling for a third or fourth place spot, and they really showed that fight today. I give them credit, they played well today.”
Rozick also led the Owls with a 2-for-3 day at the plate with two stolen bases. The Redskins were led by the 2-for-3 effort of Sam Offenback, who also scored three runs.
While the Owls fell to 4-7 in league play (9-7 overall), the Redskins improved to 9-1 in the league (14-1 overall).
ABINGTON 6, COUNCIL ROCK SOUTH 1
Freshman Lizzie Lloyd tossed a three-hitter to earn the win. Angie LaMaina led the Ghosts offensively with a 3-for-4 day at the plate that included a double, one run scored and an RBI. Raechel Holden was 2-for-4 with a double, run scored and RBI.
The Ghosts are 4-7 in league play (8-9 overall) while the Golden Hawks fell to 1-9 in the league (2-12 overall).
PENNSBURY 11, COUNCIL ROCK NORTH 5
Suzanne Swanicke was a perfect 3-for-3 to lead a 13-hit Pennsbury attack in Friday’s win over the Indians. The Falcons improved to 9-0 (12-1 overall) while the Indians fell to 4-7 in the league (7-7 overall).
Continental Conference
CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH 3, NORTH PENN 1 (11 innings)
Kristyn Marinelli stepped to the plate with two outs, a pair of runners on board and the Titans clinging to an anything but secure one-run lead in the top of the 11th inning of Friday’s marathon. The junior first baseman stroked a single through the left side of the Maidens’ drawn-in infield to plate a run, and for the first time all day, the Titans – who led 3-1 - had some breathing room.
“I saw that she was throwing strikes early in the count,” Marinelli said of freshman hurler Jackie Bilotti. “I went up my first couple of bats swinging at the first pitch and saw that wasn’t really working.
“This time I took one. She was starting to wear down a little bit, but I give her credit. She was moving the ball, but she started throwing towards the middle of the plate. I saw one and I just went for it. I just placed it in the right spot at the right time.”
Earlier in the 11th, Lauren Klepchick legged out an infield single, and the Titans’ first run crossed the plate on a fielder’s choice by Hallie Bilker. With the international tiebreaker in effect and a runner on second to start the frame, one run didn’t figure to be enough, so when the Titans had a runner thrown out at the plate on a bunt attempt, it looked as though they might have to settle for a one-run lead until Marinelli delivered.
Titan mound ace Haileigh Stocks tossed a one-two-three 11th, coming up with her 11th and biggest strikeout for the inning’s second out with a Maiden runner on third and then retiring the next batter on a soft line drive to first for the game’s final out. She allowed just four hits and no earned runs in a stellar showing.
“She’s really tough,” South coach Dan Hayes said.
“I felt strong,” Stocks said. “I took it easy this week because we had rainouts. I threw yesterday at practice, and I felt really good.
“It was frustrating because we should have scored before that, but you just have to take it for what it is.”
The Titans stranded 10 base runners through 10 innings.
“That’s been our story – we’re not getting hits at the right time,” Hayes said. “Earlier in the year, we were crushing the ball, especially our three, four and five hitters.”
The Titans had 10 hits but never could get into any kind of offensive rhythm against freshman Jackie Bilotti.
“We weren’t used to her speed, and we weren’t patient,” Stocks said. “We weren’t hitting our pitches, and we were swinging at wrong counts and not being smart batters.”
Bilotti helped her own cause by throwing some leather at the Titans. The freshman hurler was credited with eight assists/putouts while also fanning four.
“That’s a strong lineup, and it’s the second time she’s gone through it,” Maiden coach Rick Torresani said. “I was a little leery about this time, but she came out – we mixed the pitches up, and she just pitched another great game.
“She fielded her position. She’s an athlete, and for a freshman to be doing what she’s been doing – she’s keeping us in every game. It’s unbelievable. I can’t say anything more about her. She’s just a great young talent.”
After nine scoreless innings, both teams plated a run in the 10th when the international tiebreaker went into effect. The Titans benefitted from a clutch two-out double to right field by Stocks. The Maidens answered with a run in the bottom of the inning, capitalizing on an errant throw on Erin Maher’s bunt single.
That set the stage for the 11th inning and a Titans’ win that came on the heels of a 4-3 loss to a Souderton squad they had defeated 14-4 earlier this season.
“You don’t really know what to expect, and you can’t go out there just expecting to win because there are teams we 10-runned and we came back and lost to,” Stocks said. “So you can’t really go out and expect anything. You know you have to work.”
“You have to keep working,” Marinelli added, “expecting on any given Sunday anybody can beat anybody. Even this game, we didn’t know what to expect after Hatboro lost to Pennridge, and we just put everything on the line and gave everything we had. Sometimes it didn’t work out, but it’s all about results.”
The results showed that the Titans had earned the important win and remained atop the conference standings (12-2, 9-1 SOL). The Maidens remain in third place in the standings (9-6, 6-4).
SOUDERTON 5, QUAKERTOWN 1
Heather Milligan was solid on the mound for the Indians, scattering six hits and allowing one run – that came in the seventh inning. The Indians plated all the runs Milligan would need in the third when they put three runs on the board. Moira Golden led the team with two RBIs. Also coming up big for the Indians were Alex Ziegler (3-for-4), Corrine Stiles (2-for-3), Salina Allebach (2-for-4) and Lauren Urbanski (2-for-3, RBI).
The Indians evened their league mark at 5-5 while they improved to 6-7 overall. The Panthers are 0-9 in the league (1-13 overall).
American Conference
UPPER DUBLIN 2, NORRISTOWN 1
The Flying Cardinals have been their own worst enemy in the field on occasions this season, but in Friday’s game, they played error-free softball.
“You don’t make errors, and you can win a 2-1 ball game,” coach Heather Boyer said. “We had a game postponed on Wednesday to Thursday and then Thursday until the end of the season, so we had short practices and were out of our groove a little bit. It kind of breaks the momentum, so I was a little concerned coming out after three days off. I wasn’t too sure what to expect.”
The Flying Cardinals set the tone for their standout defensive effort in the first inning. Norristown’s Steph DiNolfi led off with a single, and Sara Rosetti followed with a single to put a pair of runners on board with none out. Kristin Ganderton came up with a big strikeout for the inning’s first out, and then came the defensive play of the game for the Cardinals. Third baseman Rachel Hyman fielded a hard grounder by cleanup batter Monica Levins, touched third base for the inning’s second out and then fired the ball to Rachel Stingel at second base to complete the inning-ending double play.
“It was a tough play – it was a one hopper, but (Stengel) dug it out and got the force-out at second, so we had a great double play to take away their momentum, which was huge,” Boyer said.
The Flying Cardinals loaded the bases in the bottom of first but couldn’t capitalize. They plated a pair in the fourth inning. Hyman led off the inning with a single and later scored on Nichole Moran’s RBI single. The second Upper Dublin run was unearned.
The Eagles cut that 2-0 lead in half in the sixth on Bri Kennedy’s RBI single to left. That would be the extent of the Eagles’ scoring as Ganderton closed it out to earn the win, allowing five hits while fanning seven and walking one. Rosetti took the loss despite allowing just four hits and one earned run. She fanned four and walked none.
“It’s hard to play under that kind of pressure where one run, one hit, one miscue can make or break the game,” Boyer said. “We don’t historically do well with that, but today they buckled down and really focused. They did a lot of the little things right and were very calm, cool and collected.”
Ganderton put the finishing touches on the big win by retiring the Eagles in order in the seventh.
“She really did a good job of hitting her spots, working ahead in the count and closing the door on them,” Boyer said of her pitcher. “We’ve been off since Monday, and it was hot – we’re not used to it. It was a tough day to pitch today.”
While the Eagles fell to 3-5 in league play (5-9 overall), the Flying Cardinals improved to 4-5 in the league (7-7 overall).
“I told the girls we need to go 4-2 the rest of the way to be playoff eligible because that would make us 10-9, so every game matters,” Boyer said. “We’ll see what happens, but it’s going to be difficult because there are only 24 teams that they take. The more games they win, the better chance they have, but there’s only so much you can control.”
CHELTENHAM 17, PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH 7
The Panthers exploded for five runs in the first inning and six more in the second to take an early 11-0 lead. The Colonials made it a 13-7 game in the fifth, but the Lady Panthers closed it out with a four-run seventh.
“A lot of people did a lot of good things today, especially our seniors,” coach Ron Perlstein said. “The seniors really played well.”
Alexis Street was 3-for-4 with a double, four RBIs and a steal of home. Breeanin Hansteen was 2-for-4 with four RBIs, and Nikki Maurer was 4-for-5 with three runs scored. Sophomore third baseman Erika Winter was 3-for-4.
“She’s fabulous,” Perlstein said of Winter. “She’s so aggressive.”
Senior Lesenia Santiago got the job done on the mound and at the plate, earning the win while also going 3-for-4 with two doubles and five RBIs.
“She’s really doing well, and she had a great day at the plate,” Perlstein said. “Apparently their starting pitcher was out, so they were pitching a lob baller, but they fought, and it was close enough to be scary.
“We were pounding out hits, but they came at the beginning of the game and the end of the game. It was a little bit scary in the middle.”
For the Colonials, junior Jordan Katz went 2-for-4, and sophomore Erin Ryan was 2-for-3 with a double, triple and four RBIs.
The Panthers improved to 5-3 in the league (7-9 overall) while the Colonials fell to 2-6 in the league (2-9 overall).
WISSAHICKON 6, UPPER MORELAND 2
The Trojans pounded out 11 hits while Katie Ziegler allowed just four hits and struck out 11 to earn the win on the mound. Alex Comonitski drove in three runs to lead the Trojans. Marina Mellor was 2-for-2 and Ziegler was 3-for-4. The Golden Bears scored both of their runs in the first, but the Trojans answered with four in their half of the inning to take a lead they would not lose.
The Trojans upped their record to 8-0 in league play (11-1 overall) while the Golden Bears fell to 2-6 in the league (3-12 overall).
- Log in to post comments
