May 11, 2015 4 min read

CALIFORNIA – When Waynesburg High School’s softball team lost six of seven games last month, head coach Jim Armstrong thought a fourth WPIAL playoff berth in five years was out of the question.

It was no surprise, really. The Raiders lost five starters from last season and were searching for consistency on the mound. What made matters worse was the addition of Carmichaels, a perennial power in Class A, into their section.

After the slump dropped them in the standings, Waynesburg won four of its final five section games to earn a spot in the Class AA playoffs and a chance to grab the 16th seed with a preliminary-round game. That’s where the Raiders’ season ended.

South Allegheny scored seven runs in the first inning, had six extra-base hits and pitcher Brenna Pribanic allowed two hits to defeat Waynesburg, 13-1, in a five-inning game at California University’s Lilley Field.

The Raiders’ season ends with an 8-12 record, while the 8-6 Gladiators earned the 16th seed and advanced into the first round, where they will face top-seeded Deer Lakes (17-1) Wednesday at Hampton.

“It’s been a rough season. Our pitching is struggling, and we’ll work through that,” Armstrong said bluntly. “We fought to get into the playoffs, and I give the girls credit for that. We are no superstar team. We’re rebuilding. It’s a process.”

The opposite can be said for South Allegheny, which lost just one senior from last season and has bounced back from a four-game losing streak to win three in a row. When the WPIAL playoff pairings were announced, Gladiators head coach Hal Minford was “offended and appalled” that his team needed to win a game to reach the first round.

Their play Monday afternoon reflected the perceived oversight. Four players had multiple RBI, including senior right fielder Julia Giannandrea, who went 2-for-4, including a double, triple and three RBI.

She started the top of the first inning with a lead-off triple and scored two batters later when third baseman Spencer Lawson hit a two-run double into the gap in right-center field. South Allegheny added five more runs in the first inning on three hits.

Waynesburg pitcher Taylor Staley struck out the second batter of the game, but lasted just five more hitters. Giannandrea capped the first inning with a three-run double to give South Allegheny a 7-0 lead.

“When the brackets came out, we weren’t real happy to be a 17th seed,” Minford said. “We play in the toughest section in high school softball with (Seton-La Salle), Steel Valley and South Park. I can’t quit talking about it, but that being said, I was very happy with how we started.”

The offensive explosion started the game and Pribanic, a junior left-hander, finished it by not allowing a hit until the bottom of the fourth inning, when Waynesburg senior third baseman Hannah Gibbons, a Penn recruit, hit a line drive off the third baseman’s glove for an infield single. Pribanic did not record a strikeout, but mixed a fastball with a change and curveball to throw the Raiders off balance.

“My hitters had a bad day, a terribly bad day,” Armstrong said. “We’re better than that. The pitcher out there did a nice job for them. In the first inning, we gave up seven runs. It’s tough to get back in the game after that.”

The Gladiators added three runs in the third inning with an RBI double by Sarah Pribanic and a two-run double by Brenna Pribanic. Bailey Myers had an inside-the-park home run in the fourth inning.

They scored two more in the fifth inning to trigger the mercy rule. The Raiders scored their lone run in the bottom of the fifth when senior center fielder Gabby Rose hit an RBI double, but Brenna Pribanic recorded the final two outs to end the game and Waynesburg’s season.

“We’ve got more kids coming up. We’re not going to give up,” Armstrong said. “We’re fighters. I’m very proud of these kids. I had three freshmen in the lineup. From Myrtle Beach at the start of the season to here, we’ve come a long way.”