PUNXSUTAWNEY – The Clearfield Area High School softball team was unable to solve the pitching of Punxsutawney senior Amber Lellock Wednesday and suffered a 9-2 loss in District 9 Northern Allegany League Big School Division and Central Penn League action at Harry Noerr Field.
Lellock fashioned a two-hitter with 15 strikeouts in her first start of the season, keeping the Lady Chucks undefeated.
She racked up 10 strikeouts in the first three innings.
“She threw pretty hard,” Lady Bison coach Bob Dixon said. “She wasn’t overpowering, but she hit her spots well and didn’t walk anybody.
Clearfield trailed only 2-1 after Suzie Colesar reached base on an error and beat the throw home on Makenzie Moore’s grounder to short in the fourth inning.
However, Punxsy opened a 6-1 lead in the bottom of the frame on run-scoring singles by Hannah Neal and Angie Laska and a two-run hit by Ashley Barenchik. Three of the four runs were unearned because of a two-out miscue.
The Lady Chucks, 2-0 in the D9NAL and 3-0 in the CPL, took advantage of Clearfield’s only other misplay to add three more unearned tallies in the sixth, one coming on a home run by Shawnna Crago.
Punxsy’s early edge was a result of Barenchik’s triple, Crago’s single and Jenna Reitz’s double in the first inning.
B.J. Bowman tripled and scored the second Lady Bison run on Colesar’s groundout in the sixth.
Heather Picard was dealt her third loss despite giving up only three earned runs while striking out four and walking one.
“Our pitching wasn’t bad and our fielding was adequate, but our hitting was inadequate,” Dixon evaluated Clearfield’s fifth loss in six outings.
The Lady Bisons, 0-2 in the D9NAL and 1-4 in the CPL, will play two games in the Thunder of the Mountain Tournament Saturday, the first against Brockway at 11:45 a.m. at Peddie Park near Lock Haven.
The 9 a.m. opener pits host Central Mountain against Altoona.
The consolation and championship games will be played in the afternoon.
CLEARFIELD — 2
Andrea Butler ss 3010, Janell Zalno lf 3000, B.J. Bowman cf 3110, Suzie Colesar 1b 3101, Melinda Owens 2b 3000, Makenzie Moore c 3001, Rachel Cordon dp 3000, Mia Keener 3b 3000, Lindsey Samsel rf 2000, Baillie Davis ph 1000, Heather Picard p (flex) 0000. TOTALS: 27 2 2 2.
PUNXSUTAWNEY — 9
Angie Laska ss 4211, Ashley Barenchik 2b 3232, Taylor Powell 1b 4001, Shawnna Crago rf 4222, Jenna Reitz 3b 3121, Amber Lellock p 2010, Skylyn Kopas lf 2000, Kristen Fedder lf 1000, Hannah Neal c 3121, Megan Kauffman cf 3100. TOTALS: 29 9 11 8.
Score by Innings
Clearfield 000 101 0 – 2 2 2
Punxsutawney 200 403 x – 9 11 3
Errors – Butler, Keener; Powell 2, Neal. PB – Moore 1; Neal 3. LOB – Clearfield 4; Punxsutawney 6 2. 2B – Reitz. 3B – Bowman; Barenchik. HR – Crago. Sac – Lellock. SB – Butler; Crago, Neal. CS – Barenchik (by Moore).
Pitching
Clearfield – Picard 6 IP, 11 H, 9 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 4 K.
Punxsutawney – Lellock 7 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 15 K.
WP – Picard 1; Lellock 1.
W – Lellock (1-0). L – Picard (1-3).