Hazleton Area fought off a Pittston Area comeback to win a battle between two of the final three unbeaten softball teams in District 2 on Marissa Trivelpiece’s game-ending grand slam in the bottom of the seventh Wednesday inning for a 9-5 victory.
The game, which broke a first-place tie in Division 1 of the Wyoming Valley Conference, was the completion of a contest that was suspended because of rain April 12 with Hazleton Area leading 3-1 in the third inning.
Pittston Area scored three times in the top of the seventh inning to force a 5-5 tie, but Trivelpiece’s blast decided the game.
Shayla Williams had a double and home run for Pittston Area. Morgan Mesaris had two hits and drove in two runs.
Pittston Area (5-1) trails Hazleton Area (6-0) in WVC Division 1. It is 9-1 overall and behind only Abington Heights (8-0) in the District 2 Class 5A playoff seedings race.
Pittston Area 11
Berwick 1
Pittston Area was scoreless through two innings before scoring multiple runs in each of its next four at-bats to end the WVC game on the 10-run rule with two out in the bottom of the sixth Thursday.
Alexa McHugh did not allow an earned run while striking out 13 and walking just one in a two-hitter. She also had a single, double and three RBI.
McHugh has struck out 78 in 55 innings.
Lexi Felinski went 4-for-4 and scored three times.
Bailey Loyack was 3-for-4 and Gabby Para scored three runs.
Felinski improved her season batting average to .528, just ahead of Loyack’s .516 for the team lead.
Hazleton Area 11
Wyoming Area 4
Nicole Silinskie hit a three-run homer in the top of the first inning and finished with three hits, but it was not enough for Wyoming Area against the unbeaten Division 1 leaders in Thursday’s WVC crossover game.
Bri Pizzano added two hits in the loss.
Pittston Area 19
Coughlin 1
Freshman Tori Para tossed a one-hitter with two walks and four strikeouts in the five-inning, WVC Division 1 win.
Bailey Loyack drove in six runs with a homer, double and single.
Lexi Felinski joined her in going 3-for-4. She tripled twice and drove in four runs.
Nine Lady Patriots had at least one hit while combining for 14.
Alexa McHugh had a homer and three RBI.
Halle Bryk went 2-for-2 with two runs and two RBI.
Tunkhannock 7
Wyoming Area 6
Wyoming Area led 6-2 after 4 ½ innings of Tuesday’s WVC Division 2 game, but could not hold on.
Nicole Silinskie and Bri Pizzano each had a double, single and two RBI. Pizzano also scored twice.
Kari Melberger drove in the other two runs.
Pittston Area 2
Wallenpaupack 1
Wallenpaupack chose to walk Alexa McHugh with two out in the eighth inning in order to instead pitch to freshman Tori Para.
Para made the Lady Buckhorns play with a game-winning double to left-center to decide the April 13 non-league game.
Bailey Loyack scored both Pittston Area runs. Lexi Felinski drove her in with the first one.
Alexa McHugh threw a four-hitter with nine strikeouts while walking just two.
BASEBALL
Pittston Area 12
Valley View 2
Pittston Area piled up 16 hits, including five doubles, Friday to win the non-league battle of division leaders in six innings.
The Cougars, who lead the Lackawanna League Division 1 standings, scored twice in the top of the first.
The Patriots scored seven runs in the bottom of the second, then added to their lead until they finished the game early on the 10-run rule.
Andrew Krawczyk, who doubled twice, and Joe Cencetti each went 3-for-4.
Josh Baiera drove in four runs and Cole Cherkas drove in three. They each were 2-for-3.
Gino Mariggi held Valley View to five hits while striking out five and walking two. Alex Bouika struck out two while pitching a hitless sixth inning.
Hazleton Area 7
Pittston Area 5
Chris Genao went 3-for-3 with a double and two RBI Wednesday when Hazleton Area handed Pittston Area its first loss in the Wyoming Valley Conference Division 1 game.
The Patriots had been one of the last two unbeatens in all of District 2, along with Lackawanna Trail.
The loss tightens the Division 1 race, leaving Pittston Area and Wyoming Valley West tied for first at 4-1, just a half game in front of Hazleton Area (3-1).
Devon Markert had two hits and drove in two runs for Pittston Area. John DeLucca doubled and also drove in two runs.
Joe Cencetti, who had a double and scored, and Joe Stella, each added two hits.
Wyoming Area 7
Coughlin 6
Freshman J.J. Hood got the final two outs and made himself the winning pitcher with a game-ending, two-run double in Tuesday’s WVC crossover game.
Wyoming Area led from the bottom of the second until the top of the seventh when Coughlin scored four runs for a 6-4 lead.
The Warriors pulled out the win by scoring three times in the bottom of the inning.
Dan Wiedl finished 2-for-2 with a triple, two runs and two RBI.
Cole Coolbaugh also drove in two runs.
Wyoming Area improved to 2-2 in the WVC and 7-3 overall. It is in a four-way tie for first in Division 2 at .500, one-half game in front of Tunkhannock (2-3).
Pittston Area 11
Tunkhannock 1
Pittston Area scored multiple runs in each of its four at-bats Tuesday to win a WVC meeting of division leaders in five innings on the 10-run rule.
Derek Cunius went 3-for-3 with a double, two runs and two RBI and three teammates added two hits each.
Joe Cencetti was 2-for-2, Devon Markert had a single, double and two RBI and Riley Brody also had two hits.
John DeLucca added a double and two RBI while Andrew Krawczyk scored twice and drove in two runs
Hunter Ralston threw a five-hitter with three walks and five strikeouts.
Pittston Area 7
Abington Heights 2
Brandon Constantino had three hits to lead a 15-hit attack in the April 13 non-league victory.
Joe Stella, Kevin Krawczyk, John DeLucca, Hunter Ralston and Derek Cunius added two hits each.
Stella drove in three runs. Krawczyk had a triple and scored three times.
Gino Mariggi and Alex Buoika combined on a four-hitter. Buoika worked a hitless seventh inning.
BOYS TENNIS
Wyoming Area 4
Berwick 1
Wyoming Area won four matches that were close, but decided in straight sets Thursday to improve to 8-2 and hold third place in the WVC behind unbeatens Wyoming Seminary and Dallas.
Nick Perry had the most decisive win for the Warriors, taking his third singles match, 6-3, 6-4.
The other matches – Mike Remley’s win at first singles and the doubles wins by Mike Abromavage-Jake Butwin and Patrick Musinski-Adam Wisnewski – each had one set go to a tiebreaker or 7-5.
Wyoming Area 4
Tunkhannock 1
The doubles teams of Mike Abromavage-Jake Butwin and Patrick Musinski-Adam Wisnewski and third singles player Mike Remley each lost just one game in two sets during Wednesday’s victory.
Mike Remley also won in straight sets at first singles.
GIRLS TRACK AND FIELD
Red and Black Invitational
Wyoming Area’s Madelyn Resciniti won the shot put and the Pittston Area 1600-meter relay team of Jenna Smith, Jakiya Kroon, Giavanna Innamoranti and Nicole Zambetti also finished first Thursday in the event at East Stroudsburg University.
Wyoming Area placed seventh with 28 points and Pittston Area was ninth with 23 in the meet, which drew 30 schools from around Pennsylvania and New Jersey.
Resciniti finished first out of 34 shot putters with 38-6 and was second in the discus with a throw of 114-11.
Toni Minichello was second in the javelin with a throw of 109-7.
Aubriana Marranca, in the 1600, and Valerie Gerchak, in the long jump, each finished sixth.
The Pittston Area relay team won with a time of 4:15.30.
Amber Jenkins from Pittston Area was third to Wyoming Area’s Minichello in the javelin.
Smith and Kroon joined Katelyn Wesp and Olivia Norwillo on the fourth-place 400 relay team.
Zambetti placed fifth in the 800 and Innamoranti was sixth in the 100 hurdles.
Pittston Area 91 1/3
Crestwood 58 2/3
Pittston Area won its third straight WVC Division 1 meet since a season-opening loss with the road victory Wednesday.
Giavanna Innamoranti won both hurdles races.
Icebreaker Relays
Pittston Area won three events while finishing second out of 12 teams in the standings at the April 13 meet at Wallenpaupack where all events are relays or combined team efforts.
Jenna Smith, Olivia Norwillo, Jakiya Kroon and Nicole Zambetti formed the winning 800-meter sprint medley team.
Giovanna Innamoranti, Isabella Weslolowski and Rhiannon Okuniewski won the 300-hurdles relay that was decided on combined times. Innamoranti also had the second-best time by any individual in the 100 hurdles while leading the Lady Patriots to third in that event.
Emma Coles and Amber Jenkins had the second- and third-best javelin throws individually to win the two-person event.
Katelyn Wesp, Smith, Norwillo and Kroon took second in the 400 relay.
Smith, Kroon, Innamoranti and Zambetti were third in the 1600 relay. Kaitlyn Bucci and Libby Williams were third in the pole vault.
BOYS TRACK AND FIELD
Crestwood 81
Pittston Area 69
Crestwood defeated visiting Pittston Area in Wednesday’s WVC Division 1 meet.
Alex Haas won the 100- and 200-meter hurdles and was part of the winning 400 relay for the Patriots (1-3).
Icebreaker Relays
Pittston Area placed seventh out of 12 teams in the April 13 meet at Wallenpaupack.
Kyle Mlodzienski, Tannon Kraklio, Joe Cornell and Dominic Angradi finished fourth in the distance medley relay to lead the Patriots.
Anthony Thomas and Caeden Messner combined for a third-place team finish in the triple jump.
GIRLS LACROSSE
Pittston Area 11
Hazleton Area 9
Pittston Area picked up its second win of the WVC season Thursday at Hazleton Area.
Julia Emmett scored four goals while Lily Savoy and Emily Rinaldi had three each.
Brooklyn Pedana made 22 saves in the win.
Emily O’Brien scored the other goal.
Crestwood 15
Pittston Area 4
Emily O’Brien scored two goals for the Lady Patriots in Tuesday’s WVC loss to visiting Crestwood.
Julia Emmett and Jess Zaladonis also scored.
Brooklyn Pedana made 12 saves.
Wyoming Area 16
Delaware Valley 12
Cassidy Orzel scored seven goals and assisted on one Tuesday when Wyoming Area improved to 6-1 with the WVC win.
Makenzie Switzer, who had three assists, and Caitie McDonough each scored three times.
BOYS LACROSSE
Wyoming Area 17
Holy Redeemer 1
F.J. Braccini scored three goals and assisted one Wednesday, then moved to goalie where he stopped all four shots he faced in the WVC game.
Ethan Hosier and Jakob Switzer added two goals and two assists each.
Adam Kelly had two goals and an assist while Dominic DeLuca scored once and assisted three goals.
Wyoming Area 15
Lake-Lehman 10
Wyoming Area started the week with a WVC win at Lake-Lehman Monday.
