Gomez twins lift West Chester East over Rustin in extra innings
WEST GOSHEN—Amanda and Jessica Gomez have played a lot of softball together over the years; more games than anyone can count. Once the season, ends, though, the twins will be going their own separate ways, with Jess heading to Emerson College, and Amanda taking her talents to Catholic University.
Thursday afternoon as Rustin and the Vikings completed a game suspended for weather, West Chester East was just an out away from seeing its season come to an end, but thanks to clutch hits from the twins in consecutive innings, the Vikings edged Rustin 3-2 in eight innings, and will play at least two more games.
With the win, West Chester East moves on to the District 1, Class 5A semi-finals, where they will face Kennett, a 2-0 upset winner over top-seeded Interboro Wednesday. The semi-final game is slated for a 10:30 AM start on Friday.
“Hats off to Rustin, they really battled hard today,” said Vikings’ coach Bobby Swier. “We beat them by ten runs earlier in the season, but you never can tell what is going happen in the playoffs, and they played tough all the way. Especially with the long delay, you have to stay calm and focused, and I think our girls did a great job of that, even though I don’t think I slept a wink last night.”
Wednesday’s game was halted for lightning midway through the fifth inning, with the game tied at 1-1, and Carey Werley batting for the Vikings with two outs.
Upon the game’s resumption, Rustin got that third out, and then went to work in the sixth.
Mallory Hardwick was hit by a pitch to start the inning, and moved up to second on a one-out ground out. Then the Knights decided to be aggressive, and Hardwick took off for third on a stolen base attempt. Hardwick got in ahead of the throw, and then took off for home as the throw sailed into left field.
“This a very young and very talented team,” said Rustin coach Dennis Becker. “We have a whole lot to look forward to with these girls. We battled hard and took a very good team to the brink. We’ll learn from this and come back hungry next year.”
The game went to the bottom of the seventh with the Knights still hanging on to the one run lead.
Katie Douglass led off for the Vikings, and reached on an error. Grace Koberg moved her over with a sacrifice bunt to bring up Amanda Gomez with a runner in scoring position.
Gomez, as she has so often in her time on the Vikings varsity roster, delivered, stroking a double up the middle to score Douglass.
“There was no way I was going to be done playing softball at West Chester East,” said a smiling Amanda Gomez. “I just wasn’t ready for it to end. I knew my job, I knew I had it in me, and I’m excited I was able to get it done for my team.”
The base hit was the 107th of Gomez career, which, despite Gomez losing a year to the pandemic, establishes a new school record. 
“It’s been a goal of mine since freshman year to set the school record,” said Gomez. “So it is great to get it. Even better that it came at such a big moment in the game.”
And the game headed to extra innings. Jess Gomez (8IP, 2 R, 0 ER, 2 H, 9 K, 1BB) got it done in the circle in the top half of the eighth, retiring the Knights in order.
Werley led off the Vikings’ half of the eighth, and smacked a ball to deep left that looked briefly like a walk-off HR. Instead, she settled for a ground-rule double, and a runner-in scoring position with nobody out.
Designated player and clean-up hitter Allison Hill came up next, and with that kind of power, naturally Swier opted to bunt, a great move, as it put a runner-on third with just one out.
“Carey had it tough coming in today, as she had to come to bat already having two strikes on her when we resumed the game,” said Swier. “But she has come through all year long for us. Just a great athlete—she also plays field hockey—that knows how to compete. And Allison was perfect, putting down a great sacrifice. Anything for the team.”
Gomez didn’t waste the opportunity, ripping a single up the middle, scoring Werley and kicking off a celebration.
“The whole team didn’t blink an eye, not with the delay, and not even giving up that run,” said Gomez. “Nobody even flinched when we got down to our final out. We all just knew we were going to get it done. I’m honored to be a part of keeping these girls playing, and to keep playing with my sister, my twin.”
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 R H E
WCR 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 2 2 1
WCE 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 1 3 8 3
Bayard Rustin
Lineup AB R H RBI
DelGiorno–RF 4 1 0 0
Fricker—SS 4 0 1 0
Hardwick—1B 2 1 0 0
Hopkins–CF 3 0 0 0
Bentley—3B 3 0 1 0
Black—LF 3 0 0 0
Lacey—C 3 0 0 0
Gillis—P 3 0 0 0
Kuhn –DP 1 0 0 0
Becker—FX/2B 2 0 0 0
Totals 28 2 2 0
W.C. East
Lineup AB R H RBI
A Gomez–CF 4 0 1 1
Crump—3B 3 0 1 0
Werley—SS 3 1 1 0
Hill—DP 3 0 1 1
J Gomez—P 4 0 2 1
Kulp–RF 3 0 0 0
Douglass–LF 3 1 1 0
McCormick—1B 3 0 1 0
Emma Pinto –FX/2b 1 0 0 0
Grace Koberg–PH 0 0 0 0
Alyssa Conlon–CR 0 1 0 0
Totals 27 3 8 3
2B—Werley, A Gomez
Pitching
Rustin IP H R ER SO BB
Gillis (L) 7.1 8 3 2 1 1
WC East
J Gomez (W) 8.0 2 2 0 9 1
