SPRINGFIELD — Ryleigh Frye supplied good at bats, and her defense at second base was terrific Monday afternoon.
The senior caught everything that came her way during Springfield’s 6-3 victory over Garnet Valley. Frye snagged back-to-back line drives in the fourth inning, robbing Jenna Fulmer and Ava Sharp of hits. She should’ve had an assist at home plate in the fourth inning, when the runner at third base started for home after Frye ran down a shallow fly ball in right field. Alas, the Cougars botched the rundown and the Jags scored their first of three unearned runs off sophomore Payton Feeney, who pitched a complete game four-hitter with 10 strikeouts.
At the plate, Frye batted cleanup and went 2-for-3 with a walk and two runs scored. She started rallies with singles in the third and fourth innings.
“I know I have to be ready for anything,” said Frye, whose sophomore sister, Kayla, bats fifth and plays shortstop for the Cougars.
Feeney, in her second season as the No. 1 pitcher, was in control most of the afternoon.
“I know I can trust (catcher) Nikki (Morrison) with any pitch. I was just trying to mix my pitches and hit my spots,” Feeney said.
Feeney worked around singles by Alaina Sareyka and Zoey Rogers in the first inning. She was in cruise control until the fifth when the Jaguars, aided by two Springfield errors, scored three runs. Rogers cranked a two-run homer to trim GV’s deficit to 6-3, but Feeney responded with a strikeout of Madalyn Stiles to end the frame.
“I think we have a little bit of everything this year,” longtime Springfield coach Todd Odgers said. “We’ve got senior leaders and we’ve got some really nice young players. We’re still kind of learning how to play together, but considering where we are in the season, I think that we’re playing really good team softball right now. Everybody’s got a positive attitude. I’ve got 11 players that I feel very confident with at the plate. We really do have good sticks up and down the lineup. We’re getting good defense and great pitching. Nikki’s doing a great job calling the games behind the plate. All is well right now.”
Morrison hit a sacrifice fly to deep center to chase home Julia Fegley with the game’s first run in the second inning. GV center fielder Amy Roux made a great running catch to rob Morrison of extra bases.
The Cougars tacked on four runs and sent eight hitters to the plate in the third. Maggie Poiesz drilled an RBI single and moved to second on the throw. Poiesz didn’t stop running, and when Rylee Bailey airmailed the throw to third base, she scored to make it a 4-0 game. Later in the inning Ava Craddock grounded out to second base, driving home Fegley, who singled.
Fegley had a pair of singles and two runs scored. Fiona McLaughlin doubled for the Cougars.
Alie Alkins, back in her second stint as head coach at Garnet Valley, inherited a team that won the Central League title last season but lost several key starters to graduation, including Daily Times Player of the Year Anna Sidlowski. The Jags (4-4, 3-2) received a strong pitching performance by Anna Sareyka, who struck out five in three innings.
“I think we’re rebuilding a little bit and figuring out where people can go, focusing on making progress each game,” Alkins said. “We had one bad inning today with those four errors and that’s what really hurt us. I’m proud of for fighting back and we put some runs on the board in the sixth. But if we take the mental errors away – physical errors are going to happen – we know we can be competitive.”
Also in the Central League:
Penncrest 6, Upper Darby 2 >> Charlotte Goldstein’s solo jack in the third inning ignited the Lions’ offense.
In the fourth inning, Maura Anstotz led off with a triple and came around to score on Sydney Reid’s bases-loaded, two-RBI single. Goldstein, Reid and Bella Green each collected two hits for Penncrest.
Lila Reilly struck out eight and scattered three hits en route to a complete game. The game was called after five innings due to inclement weather.
Ridley 11, Strath Haven 0 >> Ryleigh Hagerty paced the Green Raiders, going 2-for-2 with a double, walk and three RBIs.
Caitlyn Senkow supplied two hits and one ribbie. Bree Benedetto added a hit and two RBIs, while Maddie Gordon and McKenzie Sheppleman each doubled. Gemma Taggart was the winning pitcher.
In the Catholic League:
Bonner & Prendergast 13, Archbishop Wood 6 >> Freshman Mara George belted a two-run homer to put the Pandas ahead 4-1 in the third inning. The third baseman went 3-for-4 with three ribbies as Prendie earned its first win of the season.
Camryn Mariani went 3-for-5 with a double and three RBIs. Mia Lamberto added three hits, including a double, and two runs scored. Jill Schaffer and Georgie Mariani each had two hits and an RBI. Cara Schaffer gave the Pandas (1-2) five innings of solid relief to get the win.
In the Del Val League:
Interboro 18, Academy Park 0 >> Julia Bergen recorded her 100th career strikeout and allowed only one hit in a three-inning shutout. Vanessa Harrity smashed a three-run homer and finished with four RBIs for the Bucs (5-3, 3-0). Mare Nagle added three hits and four RBIs.
In the Ches-Mont League:
Unionville 12, Sun Valley 3 >> Abby Gawne and Ava Schmidt each had a run-scoring double for the Vanguards. Devon Warner had an RBI. Layla Murphy doubled.
