Bucs ‘Rush’ to take lead, top West Greene
Mark Marietta/For the Observer-Reporter
Chartiers-Houston’s Kaileigh Walton beats the tag of West Greene’s Emmaline Baezell during the second inning of Thursday’s game at Peterswood Park in the WPIAL Class A quarterfinals.
Mark Marietta/For the Observer-Reporter
Seanna Riggle gets a high five from coach Tricia Alderson as Riggle rounds the bases with a solo home run in the third inning of Thursday’s game against West Greene in the WPIAL Class A playoffs.
Mark Marietta/For the Observer-Reporter
Chartiers-Houston shortstop Lauren Rush attempts to turn a double play during Thursday's game against West Greene in the WPIAL Class A quarterfinals at Peterswood Park.
Mark Marietta/For the Observer-Reporter
Chartiers-Houston catcher Ella Richey smacks a solo home run in the fifth inning during Thursday’s game against West Greene in the WPIAL Class A quarterfinals at Peterswood Park. The Bucs won the game, 11-3.
Mark Marietta/for the O-R
Chartiers-Houston catcher Ella Richey rounds third base after hitting a solo home run at Peterswood Park, putting the Buccaneers up 8-2 over West Green in the fifth inning of the WPIAL Class A quarterfinal playoff game Thursday.
Mark Marietta/For the Observer-Reporter
Chartiers-Houston pitcher Meadow Ferri makes the throw to first base after fielding a bunt from West Greene's Lexi Six in the first inning of the WPIAL Class A quarterfinal at Peterswood Park.
Mark Marietta/For the Observer-Reporter
West Greene's Ali Goodwin is forced back to third base, arriving safely as the Pioneers threratened in the fourth inning of the WPIAL Class A quarterfinal against Chartiers Houston.
Mark Marietta/For the Observer-Reporter
The throw to West Greene catcher London Whipkey is not in time as Chartiers Houston's Seanna Riggle scores.
Mark Marietta/For the Observer-Reporter
Chartiers-Houston pitcher Meadow Ferri (14) and catcher Ella Richey share a smile as they leave the Peterswood Park field with an 11-3 victory over West Greene in the WPIAL Class A quarterfinal.
McMURRAY – The Chartiers-Houston High School softball team already had a pair of close victories over West Greene during the regular season, with the key play in each being a last-inning home run by the Bucs.
When the teams met for the third time, in the WPIAL Class A quarterfinals Thursday at sun-baked Peterswood Park, Chartiers-Houston didn’t wait to start hitting the long ball. You could say the Bucs were in a Rush.
Freshman shortstop Lauren Rush hit a two-run homer in the bottom of the first inning, one of three round-trippers hit by Chartiers-Houston in the game, sparking the Bucs to an 11-3 win over their section rivals.
The victory sends fourth-seeded Chartiers-Houston (13-5), winner of 13 of its last 14, into next week’s semifinals against top-seeded Union (15-3). West Greene’s season ends with a 12-8 record. The Pioneers’ string of six consecutive trips to the PIAA playoffs is snapped.
Rush had a big game at the plate. She went 5-for-5, drove in three runs and was a triple shy of hitting for the cycle out of the No. 2 spot in the lineup.
Her first-inning home run, hit to straightaway center field, scored Ella Richey, who led off with an opposite-field triple. It gave C-H a 2-1 lead after West Greene had opened the scoring in the top of the first on an RBI single by Taylor Karavn that drove in London Whipkey.
Rush’s home run ended whatever momentum West Greene had from the game’s first run.
“She works so hard,” C-H coach Tricia Alderson said about Rush. “She is so coachable, she is smart. She’s just great.”
Rush and Alderson also were involved in what turned out to be the key play in the game. With West Greene trailing 3-1 in the fourth inning, the Pioneers had the bases loaded with two outs and Karvan at the plate.
Karvan hit a blopper over the pitcher’s circle and in front of Rush, who waited until pinch-runner Emily Wise, who was on second base, crossed in front of her before moving forward to make a play on the batted ball. The popup hit the ground and Rush’s flip to second base in an attempt to get a froceout was late. The Pioneers apparently had trimmed C-H’s lead to 3-2.
Alderson, however, asked the umpires to confer about a possible runner’s interference. Following a conference involving all three umpires, Wise was ruled out and the score remained 3-1. The Pioneers never regained the momentum.
West Greene coach Bill Simms refused to use the overturned no-call as a reason for the loss.
“West Greene softball will never leave a field saying the umpires did us in,” he said. “It would have been 3-2 and we had the momentum, but that’s good coaching to ask about interference.”
In addition to Rush, Chartiers-Houston had home runs from cleanup hitter Seanna Riggle and Richey. It was Richey’s 12th homer of the season.
The Bucs tacked on four runs in the fourth for a 7-1 advantage. Riggle and Emily Swarrow each drew bases-loaded walks in the inning, Alana Palone had an RBI single and Kaileigh Walton lofted a sacrifice fly.
Richey homered and winning pitcher Meadow Ferri singled home Rush, who hit her second double, in the fifth to make it 9-2.
Ferri gave up six hits and pitched around six walks (one intentional) by striking out seven. West Greene left 13 runners on base.
“That’s a credit to their pitcher,” Simms said. “She kept getting timely outs while we couldn’t get a timely hit.”
Chartiers-Houston had at least two hits in every inning but the sixth, when it had one, an RBI single by Rush.
We’re playing a lot better than we were a month ago, but we still have work to do” Alderson said. “Meadow pitched out of some jams today and we made some plays behind her.
“Our first three hitters in the lineup have hit a lot of home runs, so it was nice to see Seanna hit one.”