By John Knebels

(Photos by Carlos Otero)

PHILADELPHIA – Fall sports begin in late August and finish in December. Winter sports start in November and keep going through the end of March.

The spring? Blink once, sneeze twice . . . and it’s over.

“It feels great,” said Little Flower coach Tori Sherwood. “It was a big team win. One through nine really contributed. We’ve been struggling during the games, but the girls work really hard every day at practice. The hitting was contagious. For them to pull together to get that win over St. Hubert’s is big for all of us, coaches and players.”

As for the teams atop the division, Archbishop Ryan remains the only undefeated team. At 6-0, the Ragdolls’ final four opponents – Cardinal O’Hara, Archbishop Carroll, Conwell-Egan, and Bonner-Prendergast – have amassed a 20-5 collective record.

Maddie Velez tossed four strong innings to earn the pitching victory. From innings three through six, the junior allowed two runs and four hits while striking out nine. She also added an RBI single.

“I don’t really care as long I’m helping my team out,” said Velez, referring to either entering in relief of Maw or starting the game on her own. “Me and Maura have a great relationship. Either way, we’re coming in the game knowing, ‘I’m helping you out, or you’re helping me out.’”  

With standout junior pitcher Hayden Sissons standing on the mound, O’Hara has recorded three shutouts and allowed only one run in two other games. Earlier this season, Sissons reached the career 400-strikeout plateau.

“Hitting 400 strikeouts is unbelievable to me,” said Sissons. “It’s a great accomplishment that I could never imagine hitting coming into O’Hara my freshman year. I am just so proud that all my hard work over these past years have paid off.”

Defending PCL champion Conwell-Egan engineered a huge 7-6 victory over visiting Archbishop Carroll on April 23. After a 3-0 lead after five innings turned into a 6-3 deficit in the seventh, the Eagles tallied four runs, with key contributions coming from senior Molly Milewski, sophomore Angelina Pandolfi, junior Cecelia McBeth, and a walk-off single by sophomore Grace Mee.

With battles against Bonner-Prendergast, Cardinal O’Hara, and Archbishop Ryan (composite record of 15-3) looming, the Eagles have placed themselves in position to make yet another title run.

“The feeling of adrenaline, eagerness, and drive is the same for each Catholic League game,” said Milewski. “Going into every game, we have one common goal – to win. It is a matter of how – through defense, or offense, or both.”

On April 25, the Vikings lost at Archbishop Ryan by a misleading final score of 16-6. A two-run single by Kraus and two-run homer by Cobb brought Wood to within a manageable 9-6 heading into the home fifth.

“I would say we’re in a pretty good spot,” said Wood senior tri-captain Julia Yogis. “We’ve worked extremely hard this season to get to the point where we are and make sure we work as a team. The past few games have definitely showed our ability to play as a team and play to win.

“Although Ryan was a tough loss, I’m proud of how we battled. Some of us know what it’s like to play Ryan while others have never experienced that before. It was a good first face off, but now we know what we need to work on. I think if we continue to work hard and play cohesively the next few weeks, we will definitely put ourselves in a good spot right before playoffs.”

Coming up on May 2 is a pivotal meeting between two programs that share the same Pandas mascot – Nazareth Academy at Bonner-Prendergast. A win by B-P would virtually assure a playoff spot; because of tiebreakers, a victory by Nazareth could ultimately be enough to secure a postseason visit in the school’s PCL debut.

For Bonner-Prendergast, three straight wins have put the Pandas at 3-2. On April 15, coming off two lopsided defeats, the Pandas received important relief pitching from freshman Cara Schaffer and key hitting from freshmen Mara George and Camryn Mariani in a 13-6, come-from-behind triumph over Archbishop Wood. Wins at St. Hubert’s and Neumann-Goretti followed.

Along with being considered an upset, the victory over Wood gave first-year Prendergast coach Meghan Sullivan – a former pitching star at her B-P alma mater – her first-ever PCL victory.   

“Getting that first win was a huge confidence boost,” said Sullivan. “A much-needed win to account for all of the hard work the girls have been putting in. A team win is huge to see everyone from top to bottom and all over the field partake.

“Winning as a coach is a whole different kind of winning. It’s watching the little things fall into place, getting the bunt down, throwing the girl out at second, or the girl struggling to get that hit that makes it all worth it.

“Pandas softball continues to get one percent better every single day. We are starting to jell at the right time and we are working out the kinks. We have a strong, talented group of young girls who are eager to learn and get better. The best part of this team is they are a family, they take care of each other, and they continue to pick each other up. They celebrate everyone’s victories as their own and continue to push each other to be the best versions of themselves. I’m very proud of this young team and excited for their success to follow.” 

“Right now the focus is on building a team,” said Saints first-year coach Tina Kelly. “Players are learning. We are building and learning and having fun with it – losses and all. We are bringing back the love of the game.”

(John Knebels can be reached at jknebels@gmail.com or on ‘X’ @johnknebels.)