MEYERSDALE, Pa. – Runs were at a premium as the Conemaugh Valley and Meyersdale Area softball teams battled in Monday’s PIAA Class 1A first-round contest.
Tied at 1-all in the bottom of the sixth inning, the game changed on a swing by Meyersdale junior Amber Long. Her two-run homer to left-center field provided the difference, and teammate Izabella Donaldson finished off her 17-strikeout performance in the bottom of the seventh as Meyersdale prevailed 3-1.
Meyersdale (22-2), winners of four straight District 5 titles, ended a string of two consecutive PIAA first-round losses at home with Monday’s victory.
“It’s really refreshing because everybody says, ‘Oh, you can’t get past this round,’ but we did this year,” Long said. “I really do owe it all to my dad because we put countless hours of practice at home, at the field, everywhere.”
Meyersdale will face District 9 champion DuBois Central Catholic, a 6-1 winner over Union Area, at 3:30 p.m. Thursday at St. Francis University.
District 6 No. 3 seed Conemaugh Valley sophom*ore right-hander Madelynn Beiter and Donaldson, a senior right-hander signed to play at Frostburg State, were locked in a pitchers’ duel.
Beiter tallied six strikeouts and kept Meyersdale’s potent offense at bay throughout the contest.
After losing 13-1 to Meyersdale in the 2023 WestPAC title game, the Blue Jays were much more competitive this time around.
“Our girls prepared,” Conemaugh Valley (19-5) coach Paula McCleester said. “We faced Meyersdale last year and they just annihilated us, so we really worked on fundamentals defensively. We worked on the fastball, getting to the ball. I think they did show me that they worked on that.
“They’re a heck of a team. Great battle. It was a great game all around. I’m really proud of the girls. They never stopped.”
Conemaugh Valley freshman Madison McCleester singled to begin the game and moved to second base on a dropped third strike. With two outs, freshman Megan Bilak lined a single to right field and McCleester raced home for a 1-0 lead.
Donaldson induced 28 swings and misses, while striking out the side in the first, fourth, fifth and seventh innings. She threw 79 of her 101 pitches for strikes.
“She was bringing it,” Coach McCleester said of Donaldson. “Her inside pitches were working. Her outside pitches were working. Her heat was tough. She kept us guessing. She really worked that inside corner on quite a few of those (strikeouts).”
Donaldson relied on a different pitch in her arsenal to help her throw first-pitch strikes to 21 of the 26 batters she faced.
“My screwball was working very well today,” Donaldson said. “I even mixed in a couple curveballs. Usually, the curveball is the way to go, but today, the screwball was the way to go.”
Beiter fanned two batters each in the first and second innings.
In the third, Meyersdale’s Kendell Donaldson, who was the only player in the game with two hits, walked and advanced to second on a wild pitch. With two outs, the sophom*ore broke for third on a steal attempt as the throw sailed into left field. She sprinted home for a 1-all tie.
Sophom*ore Kylee Ferguson doubled to right-center field in the sixth for Conemaugh Valley’s first runner in scoring position since the first inning. However, Izabella Donaldson struck out two of the next three three batters to keep the game tied.
In the bottom of the sixth, Meyersdale’s Laurel Daniels drew a one-out walk. Long then launched an 0-1 offering from Beiter over the left-center field fence for the game-changing blow, her fourth homer of the season.
“I was really anxious getting up to bat,” Long said. “I knew that I had to do a job. I couldn’t let my teammates hang out to dry. I just went up there with the mentality of, ‘I’m going to hit the ball.’ ”
Meyersdale tried to extend the lead after Long’s home run. On Kendell Donaldson’s single to center, Ferguson’s throw to third to nab Karleigh Beal was off the mark. Bilak retrieved the ball and threw to catcher Katie Ledwich, who tagged Beal out.
Izabella Donaldson, who struck out five straight batters and seven of eight between the third and fifth frames, fanned the side, all looking, in the seventh to set the final.
Conemaugh Valley closed a 19-5 season as seniors Julia Stiffler, Madalynn Stiffler and Isabella Winkelman will graduate.
“That was kind of a shocker last year, not getting to the state playoffs,” Coach McCleester said of getting back to the PIAA tournament this year. “We’ll be back and we’ll be ready to roll. We have three seniors graduating. Our junior high program is solid.”
Jake Oswalt is a copy editor for The Tribune-Democrat. Follow him on Twitter @TheWizOfOz11.
