WPIAL softball championship: Seneca Valley shakes jitters, beats Norwin on Kylie Staudt’s extra-inning walk-off
BROWNSVILLE — Kylie Staudt helped make it a brand new ball game.
Then she made it her ball game.
The Seneca Valley senior right fielder went 4-for-4 at the dish against Norwin in Friday’s WPIAL Class 6A softball title tilt, with her eighth-inning roller through the right side of the infield deciding a 4-3 Raiders win.
“I was super excited when I saw her get up to bat,” Seneca Valley coach Marlesse Hames said. “She’s been pounding the ball at practice. We’ve worked really hard and she came out on top. ... She’s one those (hitters) that likes to get up and go.”
Staudt knew a huge cut wasn’t needed to push Julia Valasek across. She labled her approach as simply getting her hands to the ball and letting her bat do the work.
“I knew there was a runner on second, so I just had to get the ball to the outfield somehow,” Staudt said. “However I got it there, as long as it wasn’t in the air. ... It just brought me so much joy because I knew we were on our way to states.”
Backstop Anna Kalkowski got the winning run into scoring position with a one-out double in that eighth frame. She was swapped for Valasek at that bag despite a plea to Hames that she didn’t require a courtesy runner.
Two innings before, Staudt’s one-out triple to left field scored Neve Miller from first base. The former was plated by Olivia Herrem’s single two pitches later, leveling the scoreboard at California (Pa.)’s Lilley Field.
After the game’s first frame and a half, the Raiders (21-1) had trailed by three. Junior hurler Lexie Hames didn’t appear to be herself early on in the circle and a handful of miscues by the pitcher-catcher battery had given the Knights (10-11) extra bases that they’d cashed in on.
Norwin’s Bailey Snowberger led the contest off with a double and came around on passed balls. Addison Grimes hit an infield come-backer single off Hames’ glove in the top second. Her and Snowberger — who was intentionally walked with two outs — scored by way of a Diem Wardzinski single.
“They were really nervous,” Coach Hames said. “Even Lexie was nervous. I don’t know why she was nervous. Maybe just being here and being back here. We haven’t played a whole lot in this postseason. I think that plays a role in it.”
The fact that only the winner would advance to the PIAA bracket stuck in the back of the team’s mind, too.
The younger Hames regrouped, however, putting up six scoreless frames the rest of her day. She struck out 19 batters and didn’t allow any hits past the fourth inning. Each of her four trips to the batter’s box, she was granted an immediate and deliberate free pass.
When asked if she had felt Norwin might have walked Staudt in the eighth due to her earlier success in the batters box, Coach Hames said: “I think they’re so fixated on walking Lexie that I don’t know if they pay attention to the other ones. They really should’ve been because she was on fire and she was hitting really hard all game. ... Being a senior, being here before, those jitters, I think she was just excited to be in that position.”
Of course, Staudt’s effort was crucial in Seneca Valley bringing home its second district crown in three tries.
“I just tried to get the team together, get us in the zone, and battle back,” Staudt said.
She also had two-out infield singles in the second and fourth frames. Between then, Kara Pasquale’s one-out RBI triple allowed Anna Kalkowski to get home and open the Raiders’ scoring.
Norwin 120 000 00 — 3 4 0
Seneca Valley 001 002 01 — 4 10 0
W: Lexie Hames 8IP (19K, 4BB). L: Abbie Telli 1.1IP (0K, 1BB).
Norwin (10-11): Bailey Snowberger 2B 2R, Diem Wardzinski 1B 2RBI, Addison Grimes 1B R, Madelyn Kugler 2B.
Seneca Valley (21-1): Abby Kalkowski R, Kara Pasquale 3B 1B RBI, Neve Miller 1B R, Anna Kalkowski 2B, Julia Valasek R, Kylie Staudt 3B 3-1B 2RBI R, Olivia Herrem 1B RBI, Rylee Kratochvil 1B
Monday: Seneca Valley at McDowell, PIAA Class 6A first round, 2 p.m.
