HYDE — Shrugging off a tough 3-2 loss at Penns Valley the previous day, the Clearfield Area High School softball team bounced back to defeat Brookville 4-1 behind a strong pitching performance by Abby Fedder at the Bison Sports Complex Tuesday afternoon.
Fedder scattered four hits and recorded seven strikeouts in her best start since the season opener at Curwensville in late March.
The roughest of her six innings was the second when two of her three walks following a looping single behind third base by Julie MacWilliams filled the sacks. Aleah Ames singled to left for the Lady Raiders’ run, but Erica Hanes gloved Carlie McManigle’s soft liner for the third out.
Hanes came on in the seventh to protect Fedder’s fifth win, striking out one and walking one in registering her second career save.
“Fedder pitched a really good game,” Lady Bison coach Derek Danver said. “Even a couple of the hits they did have off her were nubbers off the handle that just made it over our infielders’ heads. She did a nice job of keeping them off balance.
“I could have went with her the complete game, but we’ve been running into some trouble late in games, so before it happened, I thought I’d get Hanes in there to close it down for us. She’s been doing a good job when she goes out there in relief of Abby. Like I’ve said before, it’s a good change of speeds there.”
The duo benefited from several outstanding defensive plays over the last three innings.
In the fifth, third baseman Kirstin Norman speared Ames’ liner that was headed down the left field line and left fielder Aspen Bishop dove to backhand Megrah Sudan’s sinking liner that probably would have made it a 3-2 game.
In the sixth, right fielder Lindsay Hand charged in making a diving grab of Leah Kammerdeiner’s high fly, with the ball popping out of her glove as she hit the ground before she could secure the catch.
In the seventh, shortstop Brooke Cline reached out for McManigle’s shot that was headed into center field.
“We played a really good game,” Danver said, likening the diving catches in the outfield to ESPN SportsCenter’s Top 10 Plays. “And the routine plays we made as well.
“Those line drives on this infield this time of year, the sun’s right in your eyes. Those are tough balls to keep focused and see ‘em in your glove.”
Clearfield (7-10) didn’t allow Brookville (4-7) to keep the lead very long, striking for two runs in the bottom of the second inning.
Makayla Ross led off with a sharp single through the right side and raced around the bases when Kate Lansberry rammed a double up the left center alley. Two outs later, Hand singled up the middle to plate Lansberry.
The Lady Bison’s two insurance runs resulted from errant relay throws to third base on triples by Karly Rumsky to deep center in the fourth inning and Cline to right center in the sixth.
Ross and Lansberry each had two of Clearfield’s eight hits off McManigle, who had two strikeouts and no walks.
“We may not have had as many hits as we had in some games, but we were hitting the ball hard, even when we were getting out. Their girls were making the plays on some of them.”
The Lady Bison travel to Hollidaysburg Wednesday for a 6 p.m. non-league game at Legion Field and close out their Mountain League schedule Thursday with a home encounter against front-runner Philipsburg-Osceola.
BROOKVILLE — 1
Emily Kramer cf 3000, Aleah Ames 1b 3011, Carlie McManigle p 4000, Lauren Hergert c 4020, Megrah Suhan ss 3000, Marcy Schindler rf 3000, Julie MacWilliams 3b 2110, Leah Kammerdeiner 2b 2000, Abby Sunealitis lf 3000. TOTALS: 27 1 4 1.
CLEARFIELD — 4
Abby Fedder p 3000, Casey English 3b 0000, Mackenzie Lansberry 2b 3010, Brooke Cline ss 3110, Aspen Bishop lf 3000, Makayla Ross 1b 3120, Kate Lansberry dp 3121, Karly Rumsky cf 3110, Eric Hanes 3b-p 3000, Kirstin Norman 3b 0000, Kyra Mollura c (flex) 0000. TOTALS: 26 4 8 2.
Score by Innings
Brookville 010 000 0 – 1 4 2
Clearfield 002 101 x – 4 8 1
E – Kammerdeiner 2; Hanes 1. PB – Mollura 1. LOB – Brookville 9; Clearfield 4. 2B – Hergert; Ross, K. Lansberry. 3B – Cline, Rumsky. SB – MacWilliams.
Pitching
Brookville – McManigle 6 IP, 8 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 0 BB, 2 K.
Clearfield – Fedder 6 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 3 BB, 7 K; Hanes 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 1 K.
WP – Fedder 3, Hanes 1.
W – Fedder (5-10). L – McManigle. Sv – Hanes (2).
Lady Bison Scoreboard:
Date Opponent Score Record
3/23 CENTRAL ppd. 0 – 0
3/26 @ Curwensville 14 – 2 1 – 0
3/27 CENTRAL ppd. 1 – 0
3/29 @ Huntingdon ppd. 1 – 0
4/02 CENTRAL ppd. 1 – 0
4/03 @ Bellefonte ppd. 1 – 0
4/05 @ Huntingdon ppd. 1 – 0
4/06 TYRONE 8 – 18 1 – 1
4/09 @ Bald Eagle Area ppd. 1 – 1
4/11 PUNXSUTAWNEY 7 – 13 1 – 2
4/12 PENNS VALLEY 9 – 7 2 – 2
4/16 GLENDALE ppd. 2 – 2
4/17 @ Philipsburg-Osceola ppd. 2 – 2
4/18 @ Philipsburg-Osceola 2 – 8 2 – 3
4/19 CENTRAL ppd. 2 – 3
4/20 @ Central 8 – 6 3 – 3
4/20 @ Central 5 – 11 3 – 4
4/23 HUNTINGDON 10 – 3 4 – 4
4/24 @ Bellefonte 11 – 16 4 – 5
4/26 BELLEFONTE 9 – 20 4 – 6
4/28 @ Bald Eagle Area 4 – 14 4 – 7
4/30 @ Bradford 23 – 0 5 – 7
5/01 @ Tyrone 1 – 4 5 – 8
5/02 GLENDALE cancelled 5 – 8
5/03 @ Huntingdon 4 – 3 6 – 8
5/04 BALD EAGLE AREA 1 – 7 6 – 9
5/07 @ Penns Valley 2 – 3 6 – 10
5/08 BROOKVILLE 4 – 1 7 – 10
5/09 @ Hollidaysburg
5/10 PHILIPSBURG-OSCEOLA
5/14 ALTOONA