West Greene caps big comeback, wins by inches
C-H at its best, rolls into semifinals
By Joe Tuscano
For the Observer-Reporter
newsroom@obserer-reporter
McMURRAY – Take your thumb and fourth finger and spread as far as you can from each other. That’s how close to a foul ball Peyton Gilbert’s base hit was in the bottom of the eighth inning. The softball landed in fair territory down the right-field line and scored Katie Brudnock with the winning run in the eighth inning as West Greene pulled out a 7-6 victory over South Side Beaver on Monday in the quarterfinals of the WPIAL Class A softball playoffs.
Gilbert’s RBI single in the eighth was the only time West Greene led in the game.
“I’ve seen the No.1 team in the country get beat two or three times,” said West Greene head coach Bill Simms. “Not everyone has its best game all the time. Their pitcher had a tremendous game. I think she went 4-for-4. I don’t look at us faltering as much as she had a hell of a game.”
The Pioneers trailed right from the beginning when South Side starting pitcher Mya Ringhoff smashed a three-run home run over the center-field fence in the first inning. West Greene would chase those runs until Gilbert’s hit.
“I had faith that it was going to be fair,” said Gilbert. “It was really close.”
South Side Beaver gave up the big lead in the bottom of the first inning when Emmaline Beazell drove in two runs with a double to center field. Beazell would have four RBI on the day.
“Everyone is responsible on this team,” said Beazell. “It’s not just one player.”
South Side Beaver took a 6-3 lead in the top of the fifth, but West Greene answered with two more in the bottom of the fifth to trail 6-5. Kendra Tharp and Kylee Davis each drove in a run.
West Greene tied the game 6-6 in the seventh inning on an RBI double by Gilbert.
West Greene’s win sets up a third meeting, in the semifinals, Wednesday against section rival and second-seeded Carmichaels.
Chartiers-Houston, 6-1
It was as close to a perfect game as Chartiers-Houston can get.
A strong pitching performance from starter Meadow Ferri, a near-perfect game in the field and an offense that produced 11 hits, including the 40th career home run by catcher Ella Richey, all helped produce a 6-1 victory over Seton LaSalle in in the quarterfinals of the Class 2A softball championships.
“We had a little hiccup early in the game but we were able to recover,” said Chartiers-Houston head coach Tricia Alderson. “I was glad to see us score some runs late.”
Chartiers-Houston jumped to a 1-0 lead in the first inning when Seanna Riggle doubled in Lauren Ross. Seton LaSalle tied the game 1-1 in the third but that just seemed to make the Bucs mad. They scored four runs in the final two innings.
The big blow came from the bat of Richey, who slammed her 40th career home run to lead off the fifth to give C-H a 3-1 lead. The Bucs would go on to score three more runs in the bottom of the sixth to put the game away.
“It doesn’t matter who scores,” said Richey. “I feel like whoever scores a run in a tight game, it definitely switches the momentum.”
Richey says she never tires of the feeling of hitting a home run.
“I’m grateful for the opportunity to be surrounded by such an awesome team and by such amazing coaches,” Richey said. “It’s a feeling of gratefulness.”
Chartiers-Houston will play Riverside in the semifinals on Wednesday.