Big 1st inning propels Neshannock past C-H in PIAA semifinalss
WEXFORD – Chartiers-Houston hoped the rematch with Neshannock would go better than the WPIAL softball championship game a couple weeks ago.
It didn’t take long to see that it wouldn’t.
The Lancers sent 13 batters to the plate in the bottom of the first inning, belted eight hits, scored nine runs and went on to a 12-1 victory in five innings in the PIAA Class 2A semifinals Monday at North Allegheny.
The Lancers (25-0) have now officially beaten every WPIAL opponent they played in the last four years and have won 99 of their last 100 games. They’ll try for their third state title in four years when they play South Williamsport,11 a.m. Thursday, at Penn State.
Neshannock coach Jackie Lash said the team had a movie night Saturday where they rewatched the WPIAL championship game to prepare for Monday. It certainly paid off.
“We had popcorn and cotton candy, a big screen TV, and sat on the turf at our field with blankets,” Lash said. “We watched the game. It was good team-bonding for one, and it was fun, but they got to watch the game back and see their own at-bats. They saw what (Bucs pitcher Meadow Ferri) threw and if she had success, they were probably going to approach it the same way in this game. The girls came ready to work, fight-off the tough pitches and put the good pitches into play.”
Chartiers-Houston (22-3) dropped a state semifinal for the second consecutive season. The Bucs have lost in five straight state semifinal appearances and were denied their first trip to the state finals since 2010.
Two of their three losses this season came against Neshannock. The Lancers won 7-1 in the WPIAL final.
“Tip your caps to (Neshannock),” Alderson said. “They came out hot and hit the ball well. We needed to keep it to two to three runs, because we did settle down after (the first inning).”
After Addy Frye struck out the side in the top of the first, Neshannock had eight straight batters reach base to begin the bottom half.
Miley Anderson and Jaidon Nogay hit back-to-back singles. Frye smacked an RBI double to right field to make it 1-0.
After a mound meeting, Gabby Quinn was intentionally walked to load the bases. Gabby Paglia followed with an RBI single.
Chartiers-Houston got the first out of the inning on a wild pitch. Ferri threw a pitch to the backstop, but the ball bounced right to Bucs catcher Ella Richey, and she tagged out courtesy runner Ella Skodak at home plate.
Ferri got a couple ground balls that could’ve limited the damage to two runs, but the Bucs didn’t get an out on either play.
Callie Biondi hit the first grounder, which Bucs third baseman Taryne Drilak fielded. Drilak looked at the runner at third, who hadn’t strayed off the bag and Biondi made it to first safely.
Then, Payton Newman hit a ball to third, but it went under Drilak’s glove and everyone was safe, making it 3-0.
Gianna DeSalvo followed with a two-run double. Anderson had an RBI double. Nogay drove in a run with a single and Frye hit a two-run double, her second double of the inning, and the lead ballooned to 9-0.
“Obviously it didn’t go as planned,” Alderson said. “Neshannock came out hitting. It’s tough to overcome being down nine runs in the first inning to a team that doesn’t give up a whole lot of runs.”
That was plenty of run support for Frye, who pitched a one-hitter with 10 strikeouts.
A bright spot for the Bucs came in the third inning when Lauren Rush ripped a ball off the right field fence for an RBI double, which scored Ella Richey, who drew a two-out walk.
Neshannock added three runs in the fourth on five-straight two-out hits. Newman singled, DeSalvo ripped an RBI triple, Frengel and Anderson had consecutive infield singles and Nogay smacked an RBI single past shortstop.
The first and the fourth were the only two innings that the Lancers had hits, but they finished with 13.
Monday marked the final game at Chartiers-Houston for Richey, Ferri, Alana Palone and Alexis Fetsko. Richey leaves as the state’s all-time home run leader with 43. They finished with a WPIAL championship and two state semifinal appearances.
“We wouldn’t be in this game without (Ferri and Richey),” Alderson said. “I know they’re taking it really hard right now as we all are. This is two years in a row we lost in a state semifinal. It’s tough.”