BROCKWAY – When you need a big win, the best thing to do is to go out and play a good game. That’s exactly what the Curwensville Area High School Softball did at Brockway Wednesday evening. The Lady Tide played solid defense and turned the offense loose for a 17-7 thumping of the Lady Rovers.
Seven different Curwensville batters finished with multiple hits as the team pounded out 17 hits for the game. Sara Clark paced the visitors with a 4-for-6 night including a triple and a double while scoring four times. Stacey Johnson doubled and singled while Tess Bloom, Molly Demchak, Rachel Holland, Macy Palmer and Hannah Bressler all singled twice.
“We hit the ball well tonight, which was a good thing after last night,” Tide Head Coach Allen Leigey referencing a four-hit loss on Tuesday to ECC. “Conditions were tough for both pitchers tonight – it was windy and cold and hard to stay loose.”
Johnson recorded the victory in the circle scattering just five hits while striking out seven, walking six and hitting four batters. Brockway scored six earned runs in the contest. Jordan Inzana suffered the loss for the Rovers as she added five walks and two hit batters to the 17 hits while striking out five. Curwensville sent 11 earned runs across in the contest.
The visitors opened the game with four runs in the first inning as Clark reached on an error and Johnson drew a one-out walk. Demchak grounded back to the pitcher who forced Clark at third, but singles by Holland, Barrett and Palmer drove in all four runs.
The lead was short lived as the Rovers knotted the score in the bottom of the first. After one out, Zoe Hawkins was hit by a pitch, Gelena Sabatose singled and a walk to Michelle Mancuso load the bases. Ann Moyer then walked to score Hawkins, a fielder’s choice off the bat of Savannah Brosky scored Sabatose and a single from Jackie Brosky tied the score at 4-4 after one inning.
Clark led off the second inning as well and quickly doubled off the center-field wall. Two outs later, Demchak singled to put runners at the corners, Holland walked to load the bases and Barrett was hit by a pitch to force Clark home. Palmer followed with an RBI walk and Bressler singled in two more for an 8-4 advantage.
Two walks and a second single from Sabatose helped the Rovers score one run in the second before Johnson and the defense settled in to control the game for the Lady Tide.
Three runs in the third for Curwensville provided an 11-5 cushion. Once again Clark led off the inning and pounded the center-field wall for a triple. Bloom followed with a single to left for one run, and Johnson doubled to chase Bloom home. After a passed ball sent Johnson to third, she scored on Demchak’s long sacrifice fly to left for the 11-5 lead.
The lead moved to 12-5 in the fourth as Bressler led off with a single up the middle. She moved to second on a ground out, went to third on a throwing error after a pop-out behind third and scored on an infield error.
Brockway mounted a threat in the fifth as Moyer opened the inning by being hit. Savannah Brosky followed with a single and the bases were loaded when a fielder’s choice did not result in an out at third. A walk scored the first run of the inning. A wild pitched allowed a second run to cross, but a bigger threat was stopped after a strike out. Demchak fielded a grounder at third and turned to tag out pinch runner Gabby Burk who was looking to score after the throw went to first. A quick ground out to second ended the inning and set the score at 12-7.
“Molly made two key plays at third base that were big at the time,” Leigey said. “Macy had, perhaps her best game behind the plate and drove in five runs. It was great to see everyone contribute tonight.”
The Tide was not done with their own scoring opportunities as the top of the order led off the sixth inning. Clark, Bloom, Johnson and Demchak all singled to open the frame and account for two runs. Two outs later, Palmer drove in two with a single up the middle for a 16-7 lead.
Clark singled again in the seventh with one out, and after the second out, she was able to scamper home on a dropped ball in the outfield to end the scoring at 17-7.
“We played good defense tonight,” Leigey said. “At this time of the season, batters are catching up to pitchers. In the early season pitchers dominate, but defenses have to make the plays if you’re going to win games down the stretch. We need to keep up the defense from here.”
Curwensville moves to 8-2 on the season and will be back home on Friday for a Moshannoon Valley League showdown with West Branch.
CURWENSVILLE – 17
Sara Clark ss 6440, Tess Bloom cf 6221, Stacey Johnson p 4322, Molly Demchak 3b 5322, Rachel Holland lf 4221, Lindsay Barrett 1b 3212, Macy Palmer c 3025, Hannah Bressler dp 4122, Madi Peterman rf 4000, Katie Wriglesworth ph 1000, Cheyenne Pentz flex/2b 0000, TOTALS – 40 AB 17 R 17 H 15 RBI.
BROCKWAY – 7
Sarah Anderson 3b 3100, Zoe Hwkins lf 3110, Gelena Sabatose 2b 5120, Michelle Mancuso 1b 2101, Brittany Johnson rf 0000, Ann Moyer cf 1101, Savanah Brosky c 4211, Jackie Brosky dp 4012, Gabby Burk pr 0000, Jordan Inzana p 3001, Daub ph oooo, Sarah Guilyard ss 3000, Haley Adams ph 1000, Julie Vokes flex/rf/1b 0000, TOTALS – 29 AB 7 R 5 H 6 RBI
SCORES BY INNINGS – R H E
Curwensville 443 104 1 – 17 17 2
Brockway 410 020 0 – 7 5 5
ERRORS – Pentz, Clark; Guilyard 4, Hawkins. LOB – Curwensville 11; Brockway 11. 3b – Clark. 2b – Clark, Johnson. SAC – Demchak, Barrett. HBP – Barrett, Palmer (by Inzanna); Hawkins, Johnson, Moyer 2 (by Johnson). PB – Palmer; Savannah Brosky. WP – Johnson.
PITCHING
Curwensville – Johnson 7 IP 5 H 7 R 6 ER 6 BB 7 K 4 HB
Brockway – Inzana 7 IP 17 H 17 R 11 ER 5 BB 3 K 2 HB