ASHLEY — North Pocono’s bats started warm and ended the night red-hot, slugging their way through the District 31 champions Greater Wyoming Area to kick off a soggy Section 5 Major Softball tournament.
The District 17 champions rapped out 14 hits and scored at least one run in every inning on their way to an 18-6 win over GWA in the opening round of the Section 5 tournament at Ashley Little League.
There was no give and no let-up from any spot in the North Pocono order; all 11 hitters reached base safely at least once and 10 of those hitters came around to score at least one run.
“One through 11, all the girls swung well for us tonight,” North Pocono manager Matt Loringer said. “If the bottom of our lineup is able to continue hitting like that, we’re going to have a lot of success getting back to the top.”
The two teams played fairly evenly through the first three innings, trading runs in the first and North Pocono taking a 5-3 lead into the third.
In the back half of the game, North Pocono really locked in: six runs in the fourth, one in the fifth and six more in the final frame to stretch their lead into the double digits.
Gemma Kuzmak had three hits and drove in three runs, including a two-run single in the fourth inning, to lead the North Pocono offense.
Four other hitters had two hits each: Serena Lesh and Emma Havenstrite in the top two spots of the order, and Annabelle Guse and Peyton Murphy in the tenth and eleventh slots in the lineup.
Lesh also did her part on the pitcher’s mound, coming on in relief of starter McKinley Washko in the bottom of the fourth inning.
After a rocky fourth in which GWA plated three runs, Lesh found her rhythm and posted two scoreless frames in the fifth and sixth to bring North Pocono to the finish line.
In those final two innings, Lesh only allowed one baserunner on a walk and struck out three. Washko had seven strikeouts and just two hits allowed through her three innings of work to start the game.
“We really do have two number one (pitchers), we’re confident in both of them,” Loringer said. “It was good to get a chance to get both of them in in this first game.”
Natalie Pikas had two hits and an RBI to lead Greater Wyoming Area at the dish, while also throwing a complete game.
Emma Cornia scored in the third and had an RBI single in the fourth, while Melanie Redmond and Isabella Magallanes each had a hit and scored a run in GWA’s three-run fourth inning.
North Pocono advances to Wednesday’s winner’s bracket game, to play the winner of Hanover Area and Carbino/Archbald. The winner’s bracket game is set to start at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday.
Greater Wyoming Area will play the loser of Hanover Area and Carbino/Archbald at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday in an elimination game.
Section 5 Major Softball
North Pocono 18, Greater Wyoming Area 6
North Pocono`AB`R`H`BI
Lesh c-p`3`4`2`3
Havenstrite ss`4`2`2`2
Washko p`3`1`0`1
Kuzmak 1b`4`2`3`3
Calkins 3b`4`1`0`1
Loringer 2b`2`2`0`0
Jones cf`4`1`2`0
Schmidt rf`3`0`1`1
Guse eh`4`2`2`0
Murphy lf`3`1`2`1
Strauser eh`2`2`0`0
Totals`36`18`14`12
GWA`AB`R`H`BI
Adams ss`3`1`0`1
Cornia 2b`3`2`1`1
Pikas p`3`1`2`1
Stevens 1b`3`0`0`0
McHale lf`2`0`0`0
Miscavage cf`2`0`0`0
Cook eh`3`0`1`0
Jimmerson 3b`2`0`0`0
Redmond c`2`1`1`0
I. Magallanes rf`3`1`1`0
Totals`26`6`5`3
North Pocono` `113`616 — 18
GWA` `102`300 — 6
2B — Havenstrite 2, Jones, Pikas, Redmond.
North Pocono`IP`H`R`ER`BB`SO
Washko (W)`3.0`2`3`2`5`7
Lesh`3.0`4`3`3`1`4
GWA`IP`H`R`ER`BB`SO
Pikas (L)`6.0`14`18`13`5`6
