Upper Darby’s ‘Wild’ ride stalls in loss to Perkiomen Valley

MALVERN >> A midseason switch at the most important position on the field has benefitted the Perkiomen Valley softball team.

Junior Abby Wild, whose teammates entertain her with a serenade of The Troggs’ 1966 classic “Wild Thing” every time she comes to bat, has excelled in the circle for the Vikings. When she replaced senior and Rider recruit Emily Oltman as the No. 1 pitcher, Wild was excited and nervous to fill Oltman’s shoes.

“But,” Wild said, “I know my defense is always behind me.”

PV certainly is strong with its gloves, led by slick-fielding shortstop Ana Bruni.

“I am confident they’ll always make the plays behind me,” said Wild, who pitches for her travel organization, the Xtreme.

The unassuming junior was masterful Tuesday in the District One Class AAAA semifinal round, limiting No. 1 Upper Darby to four hits en route to a 5-1 victory at Great Valley High School.

The fourth-seeded Vikings (20-3) have qualified for the district championship for the second straight year. They’ll play No. 2 Avon Grove in a rematch of their 2015 semifinal matchup Thursday at Great Valley.

“It’s a great feeling,” said Wild, who struck out six, walked one and allowed no earned runs. “We got here (to the final) last year, so it’s nice to get back again. We’re excited.”

The Royals just couldn’t figure out Wild, who effectively mixed her off-speed pitches with her fastball. Many times the Royals were left flailing at the plate and well out in front of Wild’s changeup.

“We should have jumped on that first pitch more often because once she got that first strike, she’d come back with a changeup and some people wouldn’t swing or they would swing and pop it up,” said junior center fielder Sam Witmer, who collected two of the Royals’ four base knocks, both singles.

“Once she got ahead with that first pitch, she’d try to get you swinging at junk pitches. So, you had to jump on that first one or else you’d get behind.”

Unfortunately for the Royals, hitting with an 0-1 or 0-2 count was a frustrating trend they had trouble snapping.

“She had a good changeup, so I think they were trying to not be fooled by that,” Upper Darby coach Christina Tomczuk said of her players’ approach at the plate. “She’s a good pitcher, one of the better ones we have seen all year. We just didn’t get the hits strung together today like we usually do.”

While the Royals (19-2) will not play for a district title Thursday, they will play for seeding in the state tournament when they take on 19th-seeded West Chester in the third-place game. Not only will the Royals host one more game, they are a lock for the PIAA Class AAAA tournament, which begins next Tuesday. It’s the first time that Upper Darby has made states in eight years. In fact, the Royals are the first softball team from Delaware County to qualify for the state tourney in Class AAAA since the 2008 UD team.

“It’s fun to just be here, where we are,” senior third baseman Carli Benozich said. “It’s disappointing that we didn’t come out with the win, but we’re happy to be here.”

Perkiomen Valley had at least one baserunner in each inning against Upper Darby freshman Rebecca Sorrentino, who is one of three frosh players in the starting lineup, along with shortstop Camryn Young and catcher Lexie Witmer. The Vikings struck first when Wild kicked off the second inning with a triple the opposite way to right field. She scored on an RBI groundout by Jordan Sell.

The Vikings used a little small ball to scratch across two runs in the fifth and take a 3-0 lead. Gillian Barrie and Taylor Hamm, the team’s eight- and nine-hole hitters, each poked a single to start the frame. After Sorrentino struck out Bruni (2 for 3, run, walk, two stolen bases), Rachel Helverson executed a perfect squeeze bunt to make it 2-0. Kelsey Impink followed with a sacrifice bunt to bring home Hamm for the game’s third run.

An error allowed Benozich to reach safely and move to second base in the bottom of the sixth. After Benozich advanced to third on a wild pitch, Lexie Witmer drove her in with a grounder to second base.

Run-scoring singles by Impink and Noelle McCullough extended Perk Valley’s advantage to 5-1 in the seventh. The Royals were retired quietly in their half of the inning.