Leitner, Hatboro-Horsham win pitching duel with Burns, Souderton

HORSHAM >> Kendal Leitner knew she was in for a good afternoon.

The Hatboro-Horsham pitcher felt the positive vibe her teammates were giving off as she warmed up for Friday’s game against visiting Souderton, then only felt it get strong once she started throwing. Knowing she was in for a pitchers’ duel with Souderton’s Abby Burns, it was exactly what Leitner wanted to have in her corner.

A solo home run from Amya Lundy was the only run the Hatters needed as Leitner’s gem propelled Hatboro-Horsham to a 1-0 win over Souderton.

“My rise was my best friend today,” the junior right-hander said. “The vibe of the team helped with the mojo on the mound, so I knew something good was going to happen today.”

Leitner was terrific, striking out 14 batters while giving up just three hits and two walks. She credited several of those strikeouts to her battery partner, catcher Abby Waeltz, who did an excellent job framing pitches behind the plate.

The Hatters (6-0, 4-0 SOL American) hurler pitched out of two jams but otherwise kept Souderton’s offense in check with a good mix of pitches and her trusted rise ball when it was time to record an out. She also needed to be that locked in because her opposite was dealing as well.

Souderton (9-3, 3-2 SOL Colonial) junior Abby Burns also allowed just three hits and while she punched out just five hitters, the righty didn’t allow any walks and kept her team in the game until the final out.

“Abby pitched an amazing game, she really did,” Souderton coach Carol Atkinson said. “She’s always so good at hitting her spots with the different pitches. She’s been working on adding her rise and her change more often and she’s looking really, really good.”

Hatboro-Horsham scored the lone run of the day, but it was arguable the visitors had the better scoring opportunities.

In the top of the third, center fielder Sierra Ripka found a line and put a ball over the right fielder for a two-out triple but Leitner came back and struck out the next hitter to end the frame. An inning later, back-to-back singles by Riley York and Ryan Zimmerman put runners at second and third with one out.

Leitner didn’t get rattled, retiring the next hitter on an infield pop-up then getting a swinging third strike to again end the frame with runners stranded in scoring position.

“I tell my teammates, as long as Kendal’s in the game, we’re in the game,” Lundy said. “She’s such a giant part of the team, she’s going to keep us in it so we have to do our job and help her out by getting the hits.”

When their pitcher is feeling it, the Hatters offense knows it doesn’t have to put up a ton of runs. Her first time up, Lundy gave the ball a ride before it ultimately fell into Souderton right fielder Megan Kummery’s glove for an out.

The sophomore third baseman got some advice from leadoff batter and captain Kristen Myers and her next time up, came through for her teammates. After fouling off the first pitch of the at-bat, Lundy launched the next one out to right where it continued to carry up and eventually over the fence for a two-out solo shot.

“I trust Kendal, I trust the team so all I have to do is put the ball in play and they’ll have my back,” Lundy said. “If I don’t do it, one of them is going to do it. It came down to being more focused and realizing she watching pitching more outside.

“Kristen gave me the advice crowd the plate and that made it a lot easier.”

Now pitching with a lead, albeit a narrow one, Leitner didn’t give the visitors very much else over the final three innings. The Hatters junior gave up a two-out walk in the sixth but otherwise retired every other hitter who came up for Souderton, striking out two batters per frame.

Zimmerman, who hit a three-run home run in Souderton’s win Thursday, put a shot into one in the sixth, but it Hatboro-Horsham right fielder Megan Mills tracked it at the fence to make the catch and it was Mills again making the last out an inning later on a fly ball to wrap up the win.

“My approach stays the same,” Leitner said. “You still look for that first pitch strike, you always have to try and jump on that and play it like any other game. You never know what’s going to happen.

“I really, really trust my teammates. I know people are going to get hits, so I don’t want to stress myself out too much and I tell myself ‘let them hit it to the girls and they’ll get the outs.’”

Souderton will try to get back on track Monday when it face Pennsbury, the team atop the District 1-6A rankings at the start of play on Friday. Atkinson liked that her players were aggressive swinging the bat but Souderton is looking for some more consistency with its offensive production.

“We know what we have to work on and it starts with hitting and putting the ball in play,” Atkinson said.

The Hatters took Friday’s result as a positive by stepping out of their division and picking up a win over a solid team. Leitner and Lundy both attributed the team’s positivity as a key factor in the Hatters’ strong start.

“This is the highlight of my day,” Lundy said. “Even coming to practice, everyone is so funny, there are no cliques, there’s no toxic energy, everything is good here and that’s what puts it together on the field.”

“We just trust each other and want to have a good time,” Leitner added. “We’re always playing the game for fun and not making it about winning. The more you have fun, the more you win.”

HATBORO-HORSHAM 1, SOUDERTON 0
SOUDERTON 000 000 0 – 0 3 1
HATBORO-HORSHAM 000 100 x – 1 3 0
WP: Kendal Leitner. LP: Abby Burns. SO-BB: Leitner 14-2, Burns 5-0.
HR: HH – Amya Lundy. 3B: HH – Kendal Leitner, S – Sierra Ripka. 2B: HH – Alyssa Tooley