HYDE — Abby Thom belted a three-run home run in the first inning and then stepped into the circle and pitched a seven-hit shutout as Penns Valley defeated Clearfield 7-0 in Mountain League girls softball action at the Bison Sports Complex Tuesday afternoon.
The Lady Bison matched the Lady Rams in the hit column but had only three runners reach second base.
“We just didn’t string them together,” Clearfield coach Bob Lewis said. “We didn’t get the clutch hit when we needed it.
“There’s moments, but the hitting still has gotta come a long way. That’s something the kids and the staff have to continue to work on and try to figure out the big mystery why we are on some days and off some days.”
Brooke Cline and Devynn Ireland each had a pair of singles for the Lady Bison, who tumbled to 5-8 in the league and 6-9 overall.
Thanks to a double play when center fielder Page Kerstetter tracked down Victoria Ireland’s deep drive and threw to first base to end the second inning, Thom faced only 13 batters, one over the minimum, in the first four innings.
Clearfield had pairs of singles in the fifth and seventh innings.
Thom, a left-hander, struck out seven and did not give up a walk in beating the Lady Bison for the second time this season.
Her homer on a liner to right that got under Macala Leigey’s attempt for a shoestring catch set the tone.
“It’s always tough to battle back when you’re down early,” Lewis said.
Thom closed out the scoring with a sacrifice fly in the seventh for a four-RBI game.
Liz Brooks had a double and two singles while Harley Hess ripped a solo homer down the left field line in the fifth inning for Penns Valley (4-13, 4-7 ML).
With Raeleigh Redden ailing, junior Karlie Lewis was called on for her first start and went six-plus innings, allowing six hits and six earned runs in her third outing. She logged six strikeouts with two walks and three hit batsmen.
“She filled in admirably,” coach Lewis said. “She threw strikes, and we got as many innings out of her as we could.”
Freshman Erica Hanes relieved in the seventh and gave up one hit in her second scoreless appearance.
The Lady Bison will play their final league game at Philipsburg-Osceola Friday.
PENNS VALLEY — 7
Dayna Brown lf 4110, Alicia Houser 2b 2100, Mikaela Royer pr 0000, Harley Hess dp 4211, Abby Thom p 1214, Liz Brooks 3b 4030, Jordan Houtz pr 0100, Mikenna Lyons ss 3000, Kayleigh Jones 1b 3011, Paige Myers pr 0000, Cassidy Corl rf 3000, Page Kerstetter cf 2000, Cassidy Stover c 0000. TOTALS: 26 7 7 6.
CLEARFIELD — 0
Brooke Cline ss 3020, Sierra Jones 3b 2000, Karlie Lewis p-cf 3000, Eric Hanes lf-p 3000, Devynn Ireland dp 3020, Lindsay Hand ph 0000, Aspen Bishop cf-lf 3010, Victoria Ireland 1b 3010, Nikki Brossard c 2000, Myra Kavelak c 1010, Lauren Butler 2b 1000, Brittani Priester ph 1000, Kirstin Norman ph 1000, Macala Leigey rf (flex) 0000, Molly Sartin rf (flex) 0000. TOTALS: 26 0 7 0.
Score by Innings
Penns Valley 300 210 1 – 7 7 0
Clearfield 000 000 0 – 0 7 1
E – S. Jones. DP – Penns Valley 1 (Kerstetter and K. Jones). Penns Valley 4; Clearfield 6. 2B – Brooks. HR – Hess, Thom. Sac – S. Jones. SF – Thom.
Pitching
Penns Valley – Thom 7 IP, 7 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 6 K.
Clearfield – Lewis 6+ IP (faced 2 batters in 7th), 6 K, 7 R, 6 ER, 2 BB, 6 K; Hanes 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K.
HB – Lewis 3 (Houser, Thom, Kerstetter). WP – Lewis 1, Hanes 1.
W – Thom. L – Lewis (0-1).
Umpires – Tim Rupp (plate) and Scott Viehdorfer (bases).
Lady Bison Scoreboard:
| Date | Opponent | Score | Record |
| 3/24 | @ Central | 8 – 6 | 1 – 0 |
| 3/27 | HUNTINGDON | ppd. | 1 – 0 |
| 3/30 | @ Bellefonte | 2 – 11 | 1 – 1 |
| 4/01 | @ Huntingdon | 9 – 2 | 2 – 1 |
| 4/02 | @ Tyrone | 11 – 6 | 3 – 1 |
| 4/06 | @ Bald Eagle Area | 0 – 10 | 3 – 2 |
| 4/10 | @ Penns Valley | ppd. | 3 – 2 |
| 4/13 | PHILIPSBURG-OSCEOLA | 2 – 5 | 3 – 3 |
| 4/14 | @ Penns Valley | 2 – 7 | 3 – 4 |
| 4/16 | CENTRAL | 0 – 5 | 3 – 5 |
| 4/20 | CURWENSVILLE | ppd. | 3 – 5 |
| 4/21 | HUNTINGDON | 6 – 10 | 3 – 6 |
| 4/23 | BELLEFONTE | ppd. | 3 – 6 |
| 4/24 | BELLEFONTE | 10 – 7 | 4 – 6 |
| 4/27 | TYRONE | 12 – 2 | 5 – 6 |
| 4/30 | BALD EAGLE AREA | 3 – 13 | 5 – 7 |
| 5/01 | @ Punxsutawney | 1 – 8 | 5 – 8 |
| 5/04 | @ Glendale | 11 – 5 | 6 – 8 |
| 5/05 | PENNS VALLEY | 0 – 7 | 6 – 9 |
| 5/08 | @ Philipsburg-Osceola | ||
| 5/11 | HOLLIDAYSBURG | ||
| 5/12 | @ Altoona | ||
| 5/13 | CURWENSVILLE | ||
| 5/14 | BRADFORD |