West Chester East softball squad defeats Springfield in PIAA 5A state quarterfinals

By Bruce Adams

badams@21st-centurymedia.com

ROYERSFORD – With its 6-3 victory against Springfield (Delco) in the PIAA 5A softball quarterfinals Friday at Spring-Ford Area High School, West Chester East advances to the PIAA state semifinal for the first time since 2019.

East relied on a balanced hitting attack, a gutty pitching effort in the heat and humidity by sophomore hurler Ava Ferri and some strong defense to keep the Cougars at bay.

The Vikings scored three runs in the top of the first inning, and led the rest of the way, although Springfield cut the deficit to one run several times.

“This is just the second time we’ve come this far, to the state semifinals, and we’re excited to be going there,” said East head coach Bobby Swier, whose Vikings also made the PIAA 5A state semifinals in 2019. “Ava Ferri did a heck of a job pitching, and we played great defense. Ava’s a competitor, and she puts the ball in play and trusts the girls behind her; that’s what we’ve been doing all season.

“And we had the bats going throughout our lineup. It was an all-around great effort by everyone up and down the lineup. I think our players have continued to trust each other. No matter what happens to one of our batters, we know that someone is going to pick them up (if needed).”

West Chester East (18-8) will face Greencastle Antrim, the third-place finisher in District 3, in the state semifinal Monday at 4 p.m. at Hershey High School. Greencastle defeated District 1 champion Marple Newtown in the opening round of the PIAA 5A state tourney.

On Friday, against Springfield’s strong junior hurler Payton Feeney, the Vikings started fast. East senior Lauren Maguire, the game’s first batter, worked a full count then lashed a double to right center field. With one out, Ferri lined a double to center to score Maguire. With two out, Viking junior first baseman Mia Picciotti cracked a double to right center to score Ferri, then Picciotti scored on an outfield error to give East a 3-0 lead.

Maguire, who normally plays right field for the Vikings, played center field Friday due to a concussion suffered by their regular center fielder and leadoff hitter, Kutztown University-bound senior Daria Cross, in the first round of the state tourney. While the Vikings hope that Cross can return to the lineup for Monday’s state semifinal, Maguire did a fine job in the leadoff spot Friday, scoring three runs and rapping out three hits.

“Lauren did a great job leading off and getting things going,” said Swier.

Trailing 3-0, Springfield came right back with two runs in the bottom of the first inning. A two-out RBI single by Springfield catcher Rosy Caramanico cut East’s lead to 3-2.

In the top of the third inning, Maguire led off with a single to center field, was sacrificed to second by Ava Cross and scored on a two-out single by Picciotti on an 0-2 pitch.

“Normally, I like to work the count, but if I see a pitch I like, I’m going to try to make contact,” said Picciotti, who finished the day with four hits. “We always say before our game — one pitch, one play, one throw, one hit at a time. It slows everything and you’re ready for what’s to come.”

Swier said, “Mia did a great job at the plate today, putting the ball in play.”

In the bottom of the fifth inning, Springfield cut the Vikings’ lead to 4-3. Cougar freshman Jadyn Powers bunted for an infield hit down the third base line, moved to second on a ground out to second, and then with two out scored on a double by Feeney.

In the bottom of the sixth, Springfield threatened to score again as Adrianna Maccario doubled into the left field corner with one out. Maccario was on third with two out when the Cougars’ Paityn Dunfee hit a hard grounder near second base. East second baseman Madison Ellixson made a diving stop and fine throw for the final out of the inning.

In the top of the seventh, East got some breathing room with a two-run rally. Maguire singled between shortstop and third on a 2-2 pitch, moved to second on a ground out, then scored on a single to left by sophomore shortstop Caelyn Rodriguez, the Vikings’ cleanup hitter. Rodriguez took second on the throw home, and eventually scored on a wild pitch to give East a 6-3 lead.

Rodriguez, like Picciotti and Maguire, is one of the Vikings’ captains.

Swier said, “Caelyn is always working hard, whether it’s on the field or off the field and she’s always hustling. She’s a great leader. She’s a great shortstop, she gets to anything, and she (consistently) puts the bat on the ball and it comes out pretty hard.”

In the bottom of the seventh inning, Ferri retired the Cougars in order. On the final batter, she ran the count to 3-0, then poured in three straight strikes to end the game.

“Ava deserved that strikeout — we didn’t give up today,” said Picciotti.

Ferri said, “I feel like we made a lot of (pitching) adjustments today, and it really helped us. I feel like I threw a lot more inside fastballs and they were getting jammed. And we played good defense.”

Swier was pleased with the Vikings’ all-around play Friday.

“Trust is a big thing for us, and everyone’s been working hard in the (past) offseason and all the way through this season,” said Swier. “It’s the little things, whether it’s the fielding, the pitching, the hitting, the bunting. These are all the little things that we preach every day in practice.”

Springfield head coach Todd Odgers, whose squad also lost to East in the District 1 5A semifinals by a 10-7 score May 23, noted, “All of our starters are junior or younger. West Chester East is a great team, and they were a little better than we were today. That’s a team that could go all the way, I think.”

NOTES: The heat and humidity played a factor in Friday’s game, and at the conclusion of the fourth inning, the contest was delayed for about 20 minutes due to the home plate umpire suffering from heat exhaustion and requiring medical attention.

Swier said, “All of the catchers in this weather had to (deal with) the heat, and Ava Cross did a great job at catcher for us today; she did a great job back there maintaining everything.”

Maguire said, “It was hot out there today, particularly in the outfield, where the sun was beating on you. But I kept hydrating.”

Picciotti said, “We just tried to work together (as teammates) with cooling each other down.”

West Chester East 6, Springfield 3

West Chester East   3 0 1 0 0 0 2 – 6

Springfield              2 0 0 0 1 0 0 – 3

Winning pitcher – Ferri (WCE).

Losing pitcher – Feeney (SPR).

2B – Maguire (WCE), Ferri (WCE), Picciotti (WCE), Poiesz (SPR), Feeney (SPR), Maccario (SPR)