Super Slugfest
JEFFERSON TWP — Butler withstood Knoch's first onslaught, even matched it.
It was the second scoring barrage that did in the Golden Tornado.
The Knights broke an 8-8 stalemate by plating six runs in the bottom of the sixth inning in a 14-8 softball victory at Laura Doerr Park Thursday afternoon.
Knoch's bats tallied 14 hits a day after leadoff hitter Olivia Vissari belted three home runs in a 20-9 win at Freeport.
Vissari did not play in Thursday's game due to a school commitment.
The Knights (7-7) have come out of their shell offensively. They scored a combined 12 runs in a recent four-game stretch, all losses.
“I wish I had the switch; I'd keep it turned on,” said Knoch coach Gary Coe. “Hitting is contagious and I tell the girls that. It's when we don't do much in the first few innings, we get in a hole and struggle to come back.”
The Knights' sixth frame began in earnest when Quinn Hughes singled home Lindsay Edwards with one out.
Brynnae Coe followed with a double and Madi Gardner and Marissa Melius had back-to-back singles for a 13-8 lead.
Before Butler pitcher Kelsey Ogin could escape the inning, Sennett Purcell added a sacrifice fly for another run.
Coe then set Butler (1-13) down in order in the top of the seventh, but the Tornado's bats were far from quiet in the fourth and fifth innings.
Following a walk to Savanah Downing to begin the fourth, Lily DeMeio, Emily Makepeace and Ogin tallied three straight singles and Makepeace scored on a double steal to cut Knoch's lead to 8-3.
Brynnae Coe doused that rally, but was put on her heels in the next inning. The big blow was a bases-clearing triple off the bat of Erin Linaman and by the end of the top of the fifth, the game was tied at eight.“Down 8-0 after three innings, it would have been easy to let them score two more runs and lose (by the mercy rule),” said Butler coach Cait Baxter. “But our girls showed fight. Seven of our players had no varsity experience before this year and we're looking for improvement every game.“To score eight runs against a good Knoch team that is always competitive, it is a big improvement for us,” added Baxter.Knoch's early success at the plate was highlighted by Hughes' two-run triple in the bottom of the first. Bailey Rickenbrode added a two-run double as part of Knoch's five-run third frame.The Knights have two section games remaining, but have already clinched a WPIAL Class 4A playoff berth.Hughes, Knoch's senior catcher, is savoring her last few weeks of high school softball.“I'll be playing in college (at La Roche University), but I won't get the chance to play with these girls again,” she said. “I don't want it to be done.“I played with them growing up, so it means a lot to be able to extend our season.”Butler 000 350 0 — 8 10 2Knoch 305 006 x — 14 14 2W: Brynnae Coe 7 IP (6K, 2BB). L: Kelsey Ogin 6 IP (4K, 2BB)Butler (1-13): Erin Linaman 3B R 3RBI, Lauren Hesidenz 2-1B RBI, Savanah Downing 2-1B 2R, Emily Makepeace 1B 2R 2RBIKnoch (7-7): Lindsay Edwards 2-1B 3R, Bailey Rickenbrode 2-1B 2B 3R 2RBI, Quinn Hughes 2-1B 3B 3R 3RBI, Brynnae Coe 1B 2B 2R 4RBI, Madi Gardner 1B R 2RBIMonday: North Allegheny at Butler; Knoch at Burrell
