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O-R Athlete of the Week: Madison Lampe, West Greene

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Name: Madison Lampe

School: West Greene

Sport: Softball

Year: Junior

Lampe’s week: Lampe went 3-for-3, with a double, an RBI and three runs in the Pioneers’ 14-0 five-inning victory over St. Joseph’s in the quarterfinals of the WPIAL Class A softball quarterfinals.

Lampe followed it up with another 3-for-3 effort with 2 home runs, 4 RBI and 4 runs in an 8-2 semifinal victory over Union.

West Greene (18-4) will try to win its third consecutive WPIAL title when the Pioneers take on Monessen (15-3) today at Seton Hill University in Greensburg. First pitch is at noon.

Lampe is hitting .521, third-best for every-game players. She leads the team with seven home runs, has 38 RBI, scored 42 runs and stolen 20 bases.

“I’ve actually been in a slump lately so I’ve been focusing on my hitting,” said Lampe, the Pioneers’ third baseman. “I was dropping my hands before so now I’m working on getting them through (the swing).”

Lampe, normally a right-handed hitter, has batted left-handed this season, mainly when her sister, McKenna, is on first base. Madison Lampe tries to put the ball in play to the left side of the infield or at least block the view of the catcher if McKenna wants to steal a base.

“She is such a well-rounded player,” said West Greene head coach Bill Simms. “She picks up what we try to do so well.”

If McKenna steals a base, Madison switches to the other side of the batter’s box.

“It felt a little awkward,” Madison said. “I didn’t know how to stand to hit left-handed.”

Joining the service: The Lampe sisters decided to join the U.S. Army Reserves in late March, just weeks after the twins turned 17. They will spend nearly 10 weeks of basic training this summer at Fort Jackson in Columbia, S.C.

“My cousin is a sergeant and I’ve talked to him about it a lot,” said Madison Lampe. “I felt like I needed something else in my life beside softball. I think it will make me a better person.”

A number of schools has already contacted the Lampe sisters but it’s still early in the process. While schools such as California University and Indiana have shown interest, Alvernia University in Reading seems to be in the lead for now. It has an ROTC program.

“We’ll probaby make a decision when we get back from basic training,” Madison Lampe said. “We want to go together.”

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