Owen J. Roberts Hook-ed by Penn Manor, 2-0, in PIAA Class AAAA first round
ROYERSFORD — Things started to unravel for Penn Manor pitcher Brittany Hook.
Standing in the circle trying to get arguably the most important outs of the Comets’ season and knock off District 1-AAAA champion Owen J. Roberts, the freshman right-hander had to pause — the bow keeping the left side of her hair braided had fallen to the ground. She called time to deal with it.
Hook shouldn’t have been picking up a bow. She should have been taking one.
Hook immediately settled back in — hair flowing and all — and set down two more batters to put the final touches on a brilliant 13-strikeout, two-hitter to send District 3’s Penn Manor past the Wildcats, 2-0, in the first round of the PIAA Class AAAA Championships Wednesday at Spring-Ford.
Making its first-ever appearance in states, Penn Manor, located in Millersville, stumbled into the field as the No. 4 seed from District 3 after losses to champion Lower Dauphin (semifinals) and Cumberland Valley (seeding game). But with Hook, who set the Lancaster-Lebanon League single-season strikeout record this season (242), on the rubber the Comets (15-7) didn’t look anything like a team on a two-game losing streak.
Penn Manor will face the winner of Daniel Boone vs. Hazleton in Thursday’s second round.
Owen J. Roberts’ season concludes with a 21-5 record after running into a Penn Manor team that in many ways beat them at their own game by getting effective pitching, timely hitting and errorless defense. But the campaign was not without its highlights, namely last week’s District 1 championship win after topping Pioneer Athletic Conference champion Perkiomen Valley 2-0 in the final.”Everyone wants to go farther, but it has to end at some point and I’m happy with what we accomplished,’ said senior catcher Lauryn Wensel, who returned from an ACL injury at the start of the postseason. “Right know we’re feeling like we didn’t play our best and wish we would have gone farther. But after a couple of months we’ll know we were district champs and no matter what we did in states we still have that accomplishment.’
For her part, Owen J. Roberts senior right-hander Kylie Glenn maintained much of the level she played at during the Wildcats’ run to the district title, surrendering only four hits and one earned run while striking out five.
Her only spot of trouble came in the sixth inning when Penn Manor plated its two runs. Leadoff hitter Alyssa Schriver opened with a bunt single, was sacrificed to second and the hot-hitting Hook was semi-intentionally walked to put runners on first and second. Glenn induced a fly to shortstop Camryn Glenn for the second out.
But left fielder Bri Wood-Hickey singled to shallow center field, just in front of center fielder Sam Garritano’s sliding attempt. Schriver came home to score for the 1-0 lead. Pinch hitter Morgan Yingling followed with a grounder along the third-base line that the OJR baseman couldn’t come up with cleanly and pinch runner Abigail Busswood scored to make it 2-0.
Two runs were more than enough for Hook, who baffled the OJR lineup with her variety and inside-outside movement highlighted by a devastating slider than broke away from right-handed batters.
“My outside pitch — my slider — and my changeup were working really well,’ Hook said. “I felt good today. I haven’t pitched that well — it was one of my best.’
At one point between the fifth and seventh innings, Hook struck out six straight Wildcats.
“For us to swing and miss that many times … it wasn’t just the 13 strikeouts. That’s a credit to her (Hook) because we have good hitters. I thought we were on it, we were just missing it,’ OJR coach Kevin Kirby said.
Outside of battery mate Sydney Duplissey and Hook, only two other Comets recorded putouts all game. One of those outs was a crucial one in the first inning after Garritano crushed a leadoff first-pitch triple to right-center field. But she was thrown out at home plate by PM second baseman Kate Hotchkiss on a grounder by Alissa Vining, cancelling out what was ultimately the Wildcats’ best scoring opportunity.
After cancellations due to rain Monday and Tuesday, both teams felt ready to go. But according to Hook, the Comets didn’t mind the extra trip to Royersford.
Having that rain delay (Monday’s game-time cancellation) really helped our team come together. We bonded being in the bus for the long ride, we went out to dinner,’ Hook said. “We definitely became more of a team — we were so excited to play.’
OJR doesn’t get to experience that excitement again this season as it says goodbye to seniors Garritano and Graceton Griffith, OJR’s only players to record hits against PM, along with Kylie Glenn, Nikki Testa, Wensel, Sydney Schnarrs, Annaliese Long and reserves Avery Hart, Cayla Snyder and Regan Sigourney.
“We just ran into a great pitcher,’ Kirby said. “There’s only 16 teams left in the state at this point, so I don’t think we have anything to be ashamed about, I don’t think we have any reason to hang our heads. We just got beat by a really good pitcher.’
Tuesday’s defeat won’t be the lasting impression for the Wildcats. Kirby is known as a fiery coach, but it was a different kind of emotion that took hold as he thought back on his team this season.
“The joy in their eyes when I put the medals on their necks,” Kirby said, fighting back tears as he thought back on the district championship group. “That’s what I’ll remember.’
