Boyertown beats Pottsgrove 8-4 for 5th win in 6 games

BOYERTOWN >> The infield dirt being swirled, swept and driven toward first base wasn’t the only grit present at Bear Park Friday afternoon.

Boyertown head coach Kim Musselman sees a lot of it in the Bears’ dugout too.

“This team has a lot of grit, the most of my five years,” Boyertown head coach Kim Musselman said. “They’ve been stringing the hits together one through nine. But they have a lot of grit. Even when they’re down they don’t give up. They always battle back and don’t quit.”

The Bears weren’t required to battle back Friday thanks to winning plays from nearly everyone in the lineup in an 8-4 Pioneer Athletic Conference crossover victory over Pottsgrove.

It found success in all phases with the 10-hit offense led by two-hit performers Carlee Frantz (2-for-2, RBI), Gianna Diruggieri (2-for-3, RBI) and Rachel Moser (double, home run, 2-for-3), the pitching of junior Avery Frey (7 IP, 6 hits, 4 ER, 6 K, 4 BB), and one-error defense on a difficult day with winds above 20 miles per hour.

Boyertown won its fifth game in the last six to reach 5-5 (2-4 PAC Liberty) after a slow start to the season.

“We’re doing way better than we were in the beginning of the season,” Diruggieri said.

“As time goes on we’re getting better with our timing and hitting good pitches,” Moser said. “We’re definitely starting to get in rhythm and that’s helping our confidence.”
Pitcher Mikayla Eckman provided the offensive highlight for Pottsgrove (3-3 PAC Frontier, 4-7 overall) with a two-run home run to right field in the second inning to tie it 2-2. Second baseman Justine Fretz was 2-for-3 with a double as part of Grove’s 6-hit offense.

“I really love the fact that we always hang in there and battle back,” said Pottsgrove coach Jess Bedard. “Today, scoring at the end of the game, I’m proud of the girls for always being in it. Some of them have that fight in them; I’m happy this year that we have that.”

Junior Frantz and Diruggieri were menaces on the basepaths to set the tone early for Boyertown. Frantz stole three bases and Diruggieri executed a delayed steal of home for the Bears’ second run in the first inning.

“The girls are really good baserunners this year and like to take chances, which helps me,” said Musselman. “She’s (Diruggieri) not one to stop or slow down. She goes and gets it.”

Diruggieri was surprised, but ready.

“Coach came up to me and said ‘delayed steal’ literally right before she pitched it. I thought, ‘Oh, god,’ and I just did it.”

The bats came to life in a three-run third inning highlighted by two-run double to deep center by MacKenzie Shaner and RBI triple by Nicole Kratz to lead 5-2.

Pottsgrove responded in the top of the 4th with a leadoff single by Avery Gleason and walk. Fretz singled to center and Gleason got the green light from second but was tagged out at the plate by catcher Moser.

It was a pivotal moment, but Bedard wouldn’t change the call.

“Typically I’m not (very aggressive sending runners) but in that spot I thought ‘Let’s go!’ It didn’t work out, but I wouldn’t change anything there,” the Falcons coach said. “I honestly thought she got in there but I had a different angle than blue (umpire). Avery made a good slide, she did what I asked her to. It’s a tough one.”

Frey induced a pair of comebackers to get out of the inning scoreless, much to the pleasure of her batterymate.

“She did great,” Moser said of Frey. “I’m really proud of how she came back after giving up the home run in the second inning. But she came right back striking people out and throwing really good pitches.”

The Bears tacked on a run in the fourth (Frantz RBI single) and two in the sixth (Moser home run, Logan Black triple) for an 8-2 lead.

The Falcons plated two runs in the 7th on Elizabeth McAllister’s fly ball to right that wasn’t caught but Diruggieri recovered to throw out the No. 3 hitter heading to second to end the game.

“It was hard, but it was a good game,” said Diruggieri, an outfielder committed to Rosemont College. “I think we handled (the windy conditions) better than expected. I’m surprised we got most of them in the outfield that were hit because they were really moving.”

A tough week awaits Boyertown with games upcoming against PAC front-runners Spring-Ford and Methacton on Monday and Wednesday.

“We’ve been working really hard on our hitting to keep it going,” Musselman. “We have good momentum going and we don’t want it to stop.”

Pottsgrove locks in on Frontier play next week with games against Upper Merion, Pottstown and division leader Upper Perkiomen on Friday.

The Falcons are in contention for the 12-team District 1-5A playoffs, currently sitting No. 12 in the rankings.

“I’m just proud of the girls, especially with virtual learning and the season being shorter, getting to know each other is a little harder but they’ve done a really good job embracing each other,” Bedard said.