Quakertown rallies with 3-run 6th, tops Pennridge to stay undefeated

SELLERSVILLE >> Leah Schwalm embraces the stress that comes with stepping up to the plate in crucial moments.

“I think it’s just knowing that if I do get a hit it’s going to feel good,” Quakertown softball’s sophomore left fielder said. “Just being in the position, pressure’s a privilege to me.”

After giving the visiting Panthers their first hit Wednesday night with a solo home run in the top of the fourth inning, Schwalm delivered again on her next at-bat in the sixth – connecting on a two-RBI single to put Quakertown level with rival Pennridge 3-3.

“I had two strikes so I was just kind of looking for contact,” Schwalm said. “And the pitcher kind of looked a little nervous so I knew she was a little down and she was going to throw a strike for me.”

A single to right by Carli Maha with an error on the play allowed Schwalm to score from first base, putting the Panthers up for good as the three-run inning and a pair of defensive plays in the seventh enabled Quakertown to hold on and stay undefeated with a 4-3 victory at Druckenmiller Playground.

“Honestly, we probably deserve to lose that game,” Panthers coach Dave Scott said. “We had one good inning and other than that, they outplayed us. And Pennridge is going to be a good team, we can’t ever take them for granted for sure and we got lucky, for sure. And we got lucky, to be honest, we got lucky to win that game with the solid sixth.

Pennridge (2-3, 0-2 SOL Colonial), which snapped a two-game skid Tuesday by beating Coatesville 15-6, grabbed a 1-0 lead over the Panthers on Averi Dockery’s leadoff home run in the second.

Schwalm, who finished 2-for-3 with three RBIs and two runs scored, tied it with her shot in the fourth but the Rams regained the advantage in the bottom of the inning as Sophia Vargo scored from second when Clara Barron reached on a one-out error. Pitcher Grace Helbling extended the Rams’ lead to 3-1 by starting the bottom of the fifth with a home run to left.

“That one felt good,” Helbling said. “I swung as hard as I could. I was trying to get my team ahead, trying to get us some runs, just get us ahead, help us out a little bit.”

After having just two batters reach base in the first five innings, Quakertown (7-0, 3-0) got its rally going in the top of the sixth when Ava Beal reached first on a one-out error. Katie Mueller followed with a single to left. A passed ball put runners on second and third for Schwalm, who knocked a single through to center to bring in both Beal and Mueller.

“She struck in the first inning and it’s almost at this point with Leah that you expect her to hit the ball,” said Scott of Schwalm. “And when she struck out in the first inning I was actually kind of surprised because she’s just been hitting all year and she’s been hitting since her freshman year last year.

“She just seems to come up in key spots and always delivers for us so she’s been great all year. It’s fun, it’s fun to watch her play.”

Maha collected a third straight hit with a single to right with an error giving Schwalm the opportunity to race around the bases to score, giving the Panthers a 4-3 edge.

“I was at second and my coach was kind of stopping me and then I saw that he was waving me home,” Schwalm said. “So I was just running, hoping and they said I was good so I was happy that I could get her an RBI and score the winning run.”

With two outs in the bottom of the sixth, Ryleigh Lilly had a single drop into shallow center but Quakertown pitcher Abbey Wagner struck out the next batter.

The bottom of the seventh started with Panthers first baseman Mary Wilkinson scooping up a short throw for the first out. Second baseman Skyler Williams made the second out with a spectacular full-extension dive to her right to deny a hit before throwing over to first.

“I said to the team in our huddle, all the years I’ve been coaching that’s one of the finest defensive plays I’ve seen,” Scott said. “As far as the full extension on the dive and then presence of mind to stop, get up to a knee and make the play. Mary Wilkinson had a great play the first out of the inning on kind of a bad throw and Mary made a fantastic scoop.”

Dockery reached on an error but Wagner got a strikeout to seal the Panthers’ comeback win.

“We just got to keep working,” Helbling said. “There’s a lot we need to keep working on. We started off well, we just let a little bit go, I don’t know, we’ll be fine. We just got to keep working.”

Wagner earned a complete-game win, allowing three runs – two earned –on seven hits. She walked three and struck out five.

Helbling took the loss, giving up four runs – one earned – on four hits in 5 1/3 innings, striking out nine while walking one.

Dockery reached bases on all four of her plate appearances, going 2-for-3 with an RBI and a run scored while Lilly went 2-for-4 for the Rams.

Both teams next play Tuesday hosting SOL division games, Quakertown taking on Wissahickon at 4 p.m. while Pennridge faces Central Bucks West at 6:30 p.m.

Dockery gave the Rams the 1-0 lead by starting the bottom of the second by sending a pitch over the fence in right center.

In the bottom of the third, Lilly led off reaching on an error, stole second then advanced to third on a fly out to center. Helbling walked to put runners on the corners. After a fly out on a flare to second, Dockery was intentionally walked to load the bases but Wagner struck out the next batter to keep Quakertown down just one.

After Beal started the top of the first with a walk, the Panthers had the next 10 batters retired before Schwalm broke through with her one-out solo homer in the fourth to make it 1-1.

“She was kind of pitching a little slower than I expected,” Schwalm said. “So I just thought right field and I just saw the pitch and I just pictured it and hit it I guess.”

In the bottom of the fourth, Vargo led off with a walk then went to second on a ground out to second. An error on Barron’s grounder to the right side brought in Vargo to put the Rams back ahead 2-1. Lilly singled on the next at-bat but Barron was thrown out trying to reach third on the play.

Helbling pushed the margin to 3-1 when she began the fifth by launching a home run to left.

Quakertown 4, Pennridge 3
Quakertown 000 103 0 – 4 5 3
Pennridge 010 110 0 – 3 7 2
WP: Abbey Wagner 7 IP 7 H 3 R 2 ER 3 BB 5 SO.
LP: Grace Helbling 5.1 IP 4 H 4 R 1 ER 1 BB 9 SO.
HR: Q-Leah Schwalm; P-Helbling, Averi Dockery.
Quakertown: Schwalm 2-3, 3 RBI, 2 R.
Pennridge: Dockery 2-3, RBI, R; Ryleigh Lilly 2-4.