DUBOIS — The way pitcher Emma Hipps cruised through the first six innings against the hard-hitting Chestnut Ridge lineup, Clearfield appeared headed for a rather convincing victory in their PIAA Class AAA softball opener at Heindl Field Monday afternoon.
Then, it turned into a real nail-biter for the Lady Bison and their fans, as the Lady Lions staged a seventh-inning comeback that had the tying run in scoring position with only one out.
Hipps was equal to the challenge, though, sealing the 4-3 victory – only the second at the state tournament level by a Clearfield team – on a pop-up and her 10th strikeout against the dangerous Makayla Weyant, who had homered in Chestnut Ridge’s last two games.
The freshman right-hander allowed seven hits, three in the last inning, and two walks, one intentional to Weyant that loaded the bases with two outs in the third inning. Hipps then whiffed Lady Lion cleanup hitter Attie Milliron to preserve a 2-0 lead.
“Coming into the game, we thought it was going to be one of the best offenses we’ve seen all year, and she came out and shut ‘em down,” Clearfield coach Derek Danver said. “She’s looked good all year, but recently she’s looked awesome. All of her pitches are working. She’s been lights out.”
Hipps had the Lady Lions (19-5) pretty much mesmerized most of the way with her high heat and dipping changeup. Chestnut Ridge did register hits in each of the first four innings, but the first three never left the infield.
Meanwhile, the District 9 champion Lady Bison kept putting the pressure on Milliron but had to settle for singletons in the first and third frames.
The visiting team because of a coin flip, Clearfield quickly broke on top when Karly Rumsky grounded a single through the right side, stole second, moved to third on Morgan Cheek’s groundout and scored on a wild pitch.
Hipps crossed the plate on a wild pitch in the third inning after ripping a single into left field, stealing second and going to third on the first of Kyra Mollura’s three hits, a rope to left.
After Hipps escaped the bases-loaded situation in the lower third, she kept frustrating the Lady Lions, setting down nine of the next 10 batters she faced.
Alexis Benton and Olivia Bender provided what looked like just a little extra insurance with RBI hits in the sixth and seventh innings, respectively.
Benton’s two-out single through the middle drove in Mollura, who had legged out a bouncer to short and advanced to second on a walk to Casey English.
Bender’s looper behind second base chased home Rumsky, who had lashed a single to center and reached third base on a wild pitch and a groundout.
“Those, at the time, didn’t look like big hits, but they turned out to be huge,” Danver said.
Clearfield had a chance to add on when Hipps, who received an intentional free pass ahead of Bender’s single, tried to scored from second on Mollura’s single but was out at the plate on center fielder Lydia Mock’s strong throw.
Chestnut Ridge, which averages almost 10 runs a game, finally broke through after Hipps walked Isabella Wingard leading off the lower seventh.
Alex Dunlap lined a single to left and, one out later, Katie Gibbner punched a single over second base to put the Lady Lions on the board. Mock followed with an RBI single, and Gibbner scored on a wild pitch to make it a one-run game.
Mock, who had stolen second, moved to third on a wild pitch, but Hipps stranded her there by inducing Kayla Diehl to pop up to second baseman Kylee Hertlein before firing three strikes past Weyant.
Mock, Wingard and Gibbner each had two hits for the Lady Lions, who were runners-up to Bald Eagle Area in the Districts 5-9 Playoffs.
Mollura’s first multiple-hit performance paced the Lady Bison’s 10-hit attack, with Rumsky and Hipps chipping in two apiece.
“They’re coming together as a team right now,” Danver said. “We had a little bit of inconsistency through the year, but putting it all together at the right time.”
Clearfield (13-9) will meet District 7 (WPIAL) champion Avonworth (21-2) in the quarterfinals Thursday at a date and time to be announced. The Antelopes defeated District 10 runner-up Fort LeBoeuf 8-1 Monday.
The only other Clearfield team to play in the second round of states was the 2000 Lady Bison, who were shut out 3-0 by District 7 titlist North Hills after edging Pittsburgh City League champ Allderdice 4-3.
CLEARFIELD — 4
Karly Rumsky cf 4220, Morgan Cheek lf 4000, Emma Hipps p 3120, Olivia Bender c 4011, Lauren Ressler b 4010, Kyra Mollura ss 4130, Casey English 3b 2000, Alyssa Twigg pr 0000, Alexis Benton rf 3011, Kylee Hertlein 2b 3000. TOTALS: 31 4 10 2.
CHESTNUT RIDGE — 3
Lydia Mock cf 4021, Kayla Diehl 3b 4000, Makayla Weyant ss 3000, Attie Milliron p 3000, Jamie Emerick rf 3000, Isabella Wingard 2b 2120, Alex Dunlap c 3110, Samantha Baney 1b 3000, Katie Gibbner lf 3121. TOTALS: 28 3 7 2.
Score by Innings
Clearfield 101 001 1 – 4 10 3
Chestnut Ridge 000 000 3 – 3 7 3
E – Hipps, Bender, Hertlein; Weyant 2, Milliron. LOB – Clearfield 8; Chestnut Ridge 6. 3B – Hipps. SB – Rumsky, Hipps; Mock, Wingard 2. CS – Benton (by Dunlap), Hertlein (by Dunlap).
Pitching
Clearfield – Hipps 7 IP, 7 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 10 K.
Chestnut Ridge – Milliron 7 IP, 10 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 2 BB, 6 K.
WP – Hipps 2; Milliron 3.
W – Hipps (12-9). L – Milliron,
Umpires – Cory Thomas (plate), Neil McIsaac (first base), Doug Metheney (second base) and Terry Jackson (third base).
Lady Bison Scoreboard:
Date Opponent Score Record
3/26 BALD EAGLE AREA 2 – 17 0 – 1
3/29 HUNTINGDON ppd. 0 – 1
4/01 @ Philipsburg-Osceola ppd. 0 – 1
4/02 CURWENSVILLE 9 – 1 1 – 1
4/04 TYRONE 7 – 5 2 – 1
4/06 @ Philipsburg-Osceola 1 – 3 2 – 2
4/09 @ Penns Valley 3 – 4 2 – 3
4/10 HUNTINGDON 11 – 1 3 – 3
4/11 BRADFORD 15 – 3 4 – 3
4/12 CENTRAL ppd. 4 – 3
4/15 @ Bellefonte ppd. 4 – 3
4/16 CENTRAL 4 – 1 5 – 3
4/18 @ Bald Eagle Area 0 – 9 5 – 4
4/22 @ Glendale 2 – 6, 9 inn. 5 – 5
4/23 @ Huntingdon 9 – 4 6 – 5
4/26 PHILIPSBURG-OSCEOLA ppd. 6 – 5
4/29 @ Tyrone 0 – 1 6 – 6
4/30 PHILIPSBURG-OSCEOLA 1 – 4 6 – 7
5/02 PENNS VALLEY 4 – 1 7 – 7
5/06 @ Bellefonte 7 – 1 8 – 7
5/07 @ Central 2 – 6 8 – 8
5/08 HOLLIDAYSBURG 10 – 1 9 – 8
5/10 BELLEFONTE cancelled 9 – 8
5/13 @ Punxsutawney ppd. 9 – 8
5/14 @ Punxsutawney ppd. 9 – 8
5/15 @ Altoona 9 – 4 10 – 8
5/17 @ Punxsutawney 0 – 1, 8 inn. 10 – 9
5/22 District 9 AAA Playoffs
5/22 BROOKVILLE 12 – 0 11 – 9
5/29 vs. Karns City 5 – 1 12 – 9
6/03 PIAA Tourney
6/03 vs. Chestnut Ridge 4 – 3 13 – 9
6/06 vs. Avonworth