It was a wild day of softball action in the SOL on Thursday. Hatboro-Horsham defeated CB South to vault into a tie for the top spot in the Continental Conference standings. North Penn rallied from a 9-0 deficit to earn a 10-9 win, and a pair of National Conference teams earned extra-inning wins. Check out all of Thursday’s action.
National Conference
WILLIAM TENNENT 8, ABINGTON 1
The Panthers closed out their regular season on a high note Thursday, exploding for five runs in the third and fourth innings combined to earn the convincing win.
“This was really important for our girls,” said coach Erika Lee, whose team has been forced to forfeit Monday’s game against Pennsbury in order to avoid playing more than the allowed 20 regular season games. “Obviously, the girls have been feeling the heat of all of that negative attention.
“What I told them is – ‘This is a life lesson. You only worry about the things you can control, and you learn from these things. Don’t point fingers, and don’t say – poor me. There are things we could have done differently in our season that would have put us in a better situation right now. It is what it is, so just go out and play.’
“Them knowing it’s okay and everything is fine helped them. They came in really pumped up to play. They put the ball in play, they played solid ‘D,’ and Nikki (Alden) pitched great, so it worked out to our advantage.”
Alden earned the win on the mound, scattering just four hits. She also was 2-for-4 at the plate. Amber O’Toole (double, two RBIs) and Rachel Raczak (2 RBIs) also were 2-for-4.
The Panthers plated three runs in the third inning. Alden led off with a single, and after O’Toole reached base on an error, Raczak delivered a two-run single. Laura Petri followed with an RBI single. In the fourth, O’Toole delivered a two-run double.
While the Ghosts fell to 4-9 in league play (8-11 overall), the Panthers improved to 6-7 (12-8 overall).
NESHAMINY 2, HARRY S TRUMAN 1 (9 innings)
Truman might not boast the best record in the National Conference, but the Tigers remain a feared opponent.
“I knew it all day long that they were going to come and play their best game of the season,” coach Dave Chichiletti said.
The Redskins’ coach was right on the money. The Tigers turned in a gem and actually jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the top of the first when they collected their only two hits of the game off Redskin ace Lauren Quense.
Bridget Hunt blooped a one-out single to center field and moved up to second on a groundout by the next batter. The Tigers led 1-0 when Danielle Jones also collected a bloop single to center field.
The Redskins got that run back in the bottom of the second. Sam Offenback doubled, and the Skins were on the scoreboard when the Tigers committed a rare miscue, overthrowing third in an attempt to nail the pinch runner advancing on a groundout.
“We had a hit an inning but couldn’t get anything together,” said Chichiletti, whose team had seven hits.
Laura Altenburger led off the ninth inning with a single and was replaced by pinch runner Jen Walker. With one out, Walker stole second and was still on second when – with two outs - freshman designated hitter Nikki Wilde stepped into the batter’s box and delivered her first varsity hit - a single to plate the game winner.
“She’s played sparingly for us this year, but we gave her a shot today to see if she could help us for the playoff stretch,” Chichiletti said. “She was 0-for-3 at that point, but the last time up she hit a bomb, but the wind was knocking everything down.
“We let her bat, and she gets her first varsity hit.”
Quense did not allow a hit after the first, fanning 14 in a standout effort.
“This (win) was huge,” Chichiletti said. “As I said, if we have a hiccup along the way, we don’t get to play for the championship on Wednesday.
“I don’t know how the Truman Tigers only have six wins. They have some really good players. Their pitcher hit her spots today.”
The Redskins improved to 11-1 in league play (16-1 overall) while the Tigers fell to 6-7 in the league (7-11 overall).
COUNCIL ROCK NORTH 3, BENSALEM 2 (10 innings)
In a classic National Conference battle, the Indians eked out a win in the 10th when Tatum Kelly scored on Bailey Bigler’s suicide squeeze.
“For our girls, this was big in the sense that we were put in this situation for the first time with a freshman and sophomore-dominated lineup, and our girls were able to execute,” Rock North coach Hollie Woodard said. “In reference to winning today, that was huge. In reference to the way we feel about our season, that was huge, and also in reference to the confidence that’s going to give them as these girls evolve over the next couple of years, it’s going to be really big.
“There was a definite playoff atmosphere for them in the sense that they knew they had to win this game to have a possible dream of making playoffs. We are literally in a do-or-die situation, so it was nice to see them experience that for the first time and to be on the positive side of it. I was happy for them, and it was nice to see them on the winning end of that kind of pressure.”
Falling under the category of delivering under pressure was the fact that the Indians thwarted a Bensalem suicide squeeze attempt in the bottom of the 10th.
“We practice that every single day,” Woodard said. “Bensalem got the bunt down, the girl came in – Dom (Pinto) blocked the plate, and our first baseman (freshman Marissa Gergel) flicked it the way we taught her.
“Our freshman just stayed composed and did the play like we’ve done it a hundred times. We got the out, and it was a big out. Suicide squeezes are hard to field. There’s a lot of pressure for our catcher, there’s a lot of pressure on the first baseman. The offensive part is the easy part. The suicide squeeze is the challenge. It was very exciting to see a freshman compose herself and play the ball the way we practice it.”
Gergel also was 2-for-4 with a double, and teammate Alyssa Goldberg added a pair of hits. Goldberg also had a big game defensively, hauling in six fly balls in center field.
“It was a fun game,” Woodard said. “This was definitely why you play the game – two teams with a lot of heart, young teams trying to show their pride.
“Bensalem came back in the (seventh) inning, and it was exciting. If you’re a fan of the game, even though it’s not your team, you’re happy for those girls. A lot of people criticize the international tiebreaker, but that’s the ultimate in competition.”
The Indians took an early 2-0 lead in the third inning when Pinto delivered a two-run home run. The Owls rallied to knot the score with a gritty comeback in the seventh inning. Isabel Hansbury got things started with a leadoff double, and she scored when Victoria Hall followed with an RBI double. Two batters later, Kelly Nolan delivered an RBI single to knot the score, setting the stage for the dramatic finish.
“We tried the squeeze play, I thought she was under the tag, but they called her out,” Bensalem coach Dan Schram said of his team’s failed suicide squeeze. “To Dom Pinto’s credit, she blocked the plate the right way. They set up in a squeeze defense, and when you do things the right way, you get the call.
“It was a heck of a game. Both teams played great. Hollie did a great job with North. We were disappointed to lose, but hats off to them. Both teams played a great game. It’s a shame there had to be a winner. I’m very proud of my kids.”
Hansbury was 3-for-5 with a double and run scored, and teammate Morgan Buechner also was 3-for-5. Nolan was 2-for-4 with an RBI.
The Indians, who improved to 6-7 in the league (9-7 overall), close out the season with a tough stretch that includes games against Hatboro-Horsham, Neshaminy, Christopher Dock and North Penn. The Owls fell to 5-8 in the league (10-8 overall).
PENNSBURY 11, COUNCIL ROCK SOUTH 1 (6 innings)
Christina Bascara had another big performance at the plate for the Falcons, finishing the day 3-for-4 with three doubles and four RBIs. Val Buehler notched the win on the mound for the Falcons, who improved to 12-0 in league play (16-1 overall). The Golden Hawks are 1-12 in the league (2-15 overall).
Continental Conference
HATBORO-HORSHAM 8, CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH 6
The Hatters had a team talk before Thursday’s showdown at South. They reaped the dividends when they took the field.
“This was the first game this year I think we played like a team and felt together,” senior Chrissy James said. “This feels so good.”
The tone for this one was set in the second inning when - after the Titans erased an early 1-0 deficit with two runs in the bottom of the first inning – the Hatters came right back with three runs in the top of the second to take a lead they would not lose.
Daria Edwards got things started with a double and scored on a bunt by Emily Wrenn. A costly error kept the inning alive, and the Hatters made it hurt.
Jackie DiPietro slapped a single to left, and James followed with a clutch two-out single that plated a pair and put the Hatters on top 4-2.
“That was so important,” James said. “I feel like the last game we played them (a 9-2 loss in a game the Hatters led 2-0) – we scored, and then they scored and we got down.
“This time when they scored we got even more pumped up and stayed up.”
The Titans made it a one-run game in the third. Morgan Decker, who led the Titans with a 3-for-4 day at the plate, got things started by ripping arguably the longest single of her career – a rocket off the top of the fence in right center. Lauren Klepchick drew a walk, and Carly Dudek followed with an RBI double to make it a 4-3 game. Hallie Bilker’s single loaded the bases with one out, but Hatter mound ace Maggie Shaffer slammed the door on that potential rally by striking out the next two batters she faced.
Shaffer went on to retire 12 in a row, and the Hatters added to their lead, plating a pair in the fourth with the benefit of just one hit – a leadoff single by Nicole Casagrand.
“We play so poorly early and dug a big hole,” South coach Dan Hayes said. “We just played so badly early on, and you can’t do that.”
According to Decker, overconfidence after the Titans’ big win in the initial meeting between the two teams may have been South’s downfall.
“We beat them the last time, and we know we can beat them – it’s not a question of that,” Decker said. “It comes down to – you have to get yourself prepared, and we didn’t quite do that today.
“You can’t play a team like this and not have energy or you’re not going to win because they are a team that brings energy every time. I think we just fell flat in the beginning and we got a little overconfident. Every so often, you need that loss to bounce you back.”
In the top of the seventh, Heather Lutz singled to right to open the inning, and Edwards followed with a two-run home run to straightaway center that gave the Hatters an 8-3 lead.
“I wasn’t trying to be a hero,” Edwards said. “I just wanted to make a little contact. Their pitcher (Haileigh Stocks) definitely works you, but I loved the first pitch. I didn’t think it was going over. I was surprised when the umpire said it was out.
“My teammates met me at the plate. It was a good moment.”
The Hatters needed every one of those runs as the Titans’ offense came to life in the bottom of the inning. With one out, Jae Epstein legged out a slap single to short, and one out later, Decker turned on a Shaffer change-up, ripping a two-run blast over the right field fence, trimming the Hatters’ lead to 8-5.
“I think we sometimes lose hope, and we get even more down, and then there seems to be a spark,” Decker said. “Any spark will do, and we somehow pick the energy up. I don’t know how it happens, but I wish it would happen every single inning.”
A walk to Klepchick was followed by a Dudek single down the left field line, and an errant throw to third on Bilker’s second hit of the day allowed the Titans’ sixth run to cross the plate. Shaffer closed it out by coaxing a harmless fly ball to center for the game’s final out.
“Something happens when we get two outs – we all get nervous,” James said. “We called a timeout and all came together and said, ‘Guys, we just need one out. It’s no big deal,’ and then we did it.”
With the win, the Hatters and Titans find themselves deadlocked at the top of the conference standings with identical 10-2 records.
“There’s so much pressure on these kids,” Hatter coach Joe DiFilippo said. “Everybody comes and plays us like it’s the World Series.
“I told them the other day, ‘We are not the state champions. This team right here is not the state champion. Go out and play the game like we know how to play it and see what happens.’”
The Titans will close out the year with games against Central Bucks West and Quakertown while the Hatters will face Souderton and North Penn.
“Every team in this conference can put together a great lineup,” Decker said. “It’s a testament to everyone in this league and the talent in this league that we have so many teams that are equal. We just have to come prepared every game.”
To read Bill Keen’s full game story, please click on the following PhillyBurbs.com link: http://www.phillyburbs.com/my_town/warrington/hatters-win-to-gain-first-place-tie/article_9bbdacad-ad18-5d80-aad6-2797ea5ad170.html
NORTH PENN 10, SOUDERTON 9
There are comebacks and then there are comebacks. The Maidens staged a comeback for the ages on Thursday, rallying from a 9-0 hole to earn the electrifying Senior Day win when – with two outs and down to her last strike – junior Alexa Gable belted a three-run, walk-off home run in the bottom of the seventh inning.
“In 28 years of coaching, I have never seen anything like that,” coach Rick Torresani said.
The Indians scored early and often, opening up a 3-0 lead after two and then adding three runs in both the third and fourth innings to go on top 9-0.
“Jackie Bilotti started, and she has to be able to spot her pitches,” Torresani said. “The wind was blowing the ball all over the place, and Souderton hit three home runs.”
In the fifth, Torresani lifted Bilotti in favor of senior Laura Hess, who had thrown all of one third of an inning this year. Hess silenced the Indians the rest of the way. In the bottom of the inning, the Maidens plated four runs to make it a 9-4 game. Freshman Becky Christoffers delivered the inning’s big blow, a two-run pinch hit single with two outs.
The Maidens still trailed by five heading into the bottom of the seventh. With one out and nobody on base, the comeback began as the Maidens capitalized on several hits and walks. With two outs and runners on second and third, Gable delivered the blast to win it.
“She put one over the left field fence just by the foul pole,” Torresani said. “It was unbelievable.
“I feel bad for Souderton and their players because they played great. To lose like that is disheartening. It’s really tough. It was our Senior Night, and a senior (Hess) goes out and shuts them down after they were hitting the ball really well.
“We came up, and the kids just didn’t die. They kept fighting and fighting and fighting, and it was the younger kids that came through with the big hits.”
Torresani admits he pulled out all the stops in the bottom of the seventh.
“I was telling the coaches if we had to go out in the top of the eighth, I didn’t know who was going to pitch because I pinch hit for Laura Hess, and Jackie was out of the game,” Torresani said. “I put batters up and took people out, and I didn’t know who I was going to put in to replace them. It was all-or-nothing, but it was the kids. The kids were unbelievable.”
Gable finished the day 2-for-5 with four RBIs while Michele Holweger led the Maidens with a 3-for-4 day at the plate with two RBIs. Jess Mower was 2-for-4 and Melissa Fasick was 2-for-2 with one RBI.
The Indians were led by the 3-for-4 effort of Nikki Canfield, who had two home runs and four RBIs. Senior Mollie Burrell was 2-for-3 with a home run and three RBIs while Lauren Urbanski was 3-for-4 with two RBIs. Salina Allebach (3-for-5) Sarah Derstine (2-for-3) also came up big offensively for the Indians.
Erelle Sowers pitched 4.1 innings, allowing three runs (two earned). Meghan Weisel closed out the game.
While the Indians fell to 5-6 in the league (6-8 overall), the Maidens improved to 8-4 in the league (11-6 overall).
CENTRAL BUCKS EAST 7, QUAKERTOWN 2
The Patriots scored one run in the first inning and added two more in the second. A three-run outburst in the fourth made it a 6-0 game before the Panthers plated a pair in the fifth.
Caroline Schoenewald led the Patriots with a near-perfect 3-for-4 day at the plate with three runs scored and two RBIs. Included in her three hits was a two-run home run. Kerry Schultz was 2-for-3 with an RBI, and Julia Schoenewald had one hit and three RBIs. Kaylynn Johnson was 2-for-3 with a triple and run scored. Allie Chase and Jill Pekach each added singles and run scored. Sarah Decker contributed a single and an RBI.
Jayme Ziegler picked up the win on the mound, allowing seven hits. For the Panthers, Emily Reis was 2-for-3 with a run scored while Jess Cramp was 2-for-3 with a double.
While the Panthers fell to 1-10 in the league (2-14 overall), the Patriots improved to 5-6 in league play (7-8 overall).
American Conference
PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH 10, UPPER MERION 6
The Colonials have spent the season battling injuries, but they came up with a big win on Thursday.
Senior Erica Miller, who is still coming off a season-threatening injury, pitched one inning, and sophomore Nicole Winterbottom threw the remainder of the game to earn the win on the mound.
The Colonials pounded out 15 hits, including a double by Miller (1 RBI). Other offensive standouts were senior first baseman Kerri-Anne Cieesielka as well as junior Jordan Katz and Corinne Watson (1 RBI) and sophomore Jocelyn Porrino (2 RBIs) who all went 2-for-4. Sophomore catcher Susan Janfranciso had another big day at the plate for PW, going 3-for-4 and scoring three runs with two RBIs.
The Colonials are 3-6 in league play (3-9 overall) while the Vikings fell to 4-6 in the league (5-8 overall).
CHELTENHAM 6, UPPER MORELAND 2
The Lady Panthers celebrated Senior Day with an important win over the Golden Bears.
“We started off kind of slow, but the story again was Lesenia Santiago,” coach Ron Perlstein said. “She really pitched well, dominated again and did a nice job. They only had one hit through the fourth inning, and they didn’t score until the seventh.”
The Lady Panthers scored two runs in the second inning and added one in the third. Kelly Graham delivered a clutch two-run single to account for the two second-inning runs. The Lady Panthers iced the win with a three-run outburst in the sixth that featured a two-run single by Sabrina Casseus. Casseus led the Lady Panthers offensively with a 3-for-4 day at the plate. Graham added a pair of hits.
With the win, the Lady Panthers improved to 7-3 in league play (9-9 overall) while the Golden Bears fell to 2-6 in the league (4-12 overall).
WISSAHICKON 3, UPPER DUBLIN 2
The Trojans plated single runs in the first, second and fifth innings before the Flying Cardinals broke up Katie Ziegler’s shutout bid with a run in the seventh when Sarah Rosenbaum connected for a solo home run to center field. Ziegler allowed just one hit while fanning six and walking one.
Kristin Ganderton absorbed the loss, allowing five hits and two earned runs while fanning 10 and walking two.
For the Trojans, Alex Comonitski was 1-for-1 with an RBI. Rachel Philbin delivered a solo home run in the second inning. Kellie Gelman scored a pair of runs.
While the Flying Cardinals fell to 4-6 in league play (8-8 overall), the Trojans improved to 9-0 in the league (13-1 overall).
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