By HUNTER O. LYLE
PORT ALLEGANY, PA – Throughout the past seven years, Otto-Eldred has been a hill the Port Allegany softball team just hasn’t been able to climb. In their 12 meetings since the 2019 season, redemption, or revenge, had been elusive.
However, through a nine-inning, tooth-and-nail home opener, which was decided with a walk-off triple from Brynn Evens, the Lady Gators finally ended the drought, besting the Lady Terrors 7-4.
While O-E entered the weeks with a blank slate, having yet to take the field, Port came in fresh off a blowout victory over Smethport, one that saw their sophomore pitcher, Bria Wilcox, throw a no-hitter. Meeting their familiar foe for the second game of the season, the Lady Gators expected a dog fight.
“We just needed to have better timing with our hits. We had to play through the ball and not give up any errors,” said Port Allegany head coach Mark Wilcox on the areas of focus ahead of the meeting with O-E. “Another big thing was adjusting for (Otto-Eldred’s) pitching speed.”
Despite the lack of game-time experience heading into their season opener, the Lady Terrors were quick to the draw. Through their first three sluggers, O-E put two runners on base with a single from lead-off batter Jahden Smith and a base taken via hit batter from Baylee Francis. After the pair stole their way into scoring position, a passed ball let in the first Lady Terror run of the year. Three batters later and facing two outs, Payton Kaziska brought in two more with an RBI-single to left field.
Already up by three, O-E then silenced any rebuttal as Francis dispatched the Lady Gators with three quick strikeouts.
“The front of our lineup is pretty strong and I don’t think (Port) expected us to bring that game, defensively and pitching-wise,” said Otto-Eldred head coach Kristina Francis. “I’m really proud of our girls.”
Although Smith nabbed another hit, sending a deep double into right field to open the second frame, O-E was unable to keep their foot on the gas, suffering three outs in the next three at-bats. Meanwhile, Port was still searching for their ignition, a process that ultimately came to a head in the bottom of the third.
After putting the Lady Terrors out in four in the top of the frame, Port’s Peyton Gordon drew real estate on the baseline after surviving a full-count on a dropped third strike. Stealing second and then third, she remained just 60 feet away from home plate as the Lady Gators picked up two outs in as many batters. However, finding another lucky break with a passed ball, Gordon closed the distance to put Port on the scoreboard. Immediately after, Maddy Errick notched her first hit of the day in the form of a triple, then being brought around home plate with a line drive from Evens.
“The girls got off to a slow start coming out. Once they saw the errors they made and we talked,,” said Mark Wilcox, “they realized what they had to do to get the bats moving and move on.”
Over the next three innings, both teams took stabs at the scoreboard, with O-E building a slight cushion before Port responded to draw within reach of the lead. Still down by one in the bottom of the sixth, the Lady Gators saw another triple put in play from Breah Fillhart with only one out. Despite picking up the second right after, a hard-hit shot from Gianna Glasgow, which bounced through the infield, evened the score at 4-4 heading into the seventh.
Taking to the plate in the bottom of their lineup, the Lady Terrors looked primed to go in for the kill. Grace Rositzke opened the inning with a double, followed by a bunt single from Helaina Unverdorben and a base taken by catcher interference, which filled the diamond with no outs. However, the Lady Gators stayed strong, fanning the next three batters with three Ks from Bria Wilcox.
“It just came down to calling the right pitches,” said Mark Wilcox. “I feel like we did that well. We kept the bats at bay, kept (O-E’s) runners stranded and made the easy plays.”
In retaliation, the Lady Terrors then held two Port runners stranded on first and second as they turned a double-play in the bottom of the seventh. From there, the extra innings stalemate ensued. Through the eighth, both teams managed to put the ball in play and runners on base, but struggled to find the clutch hit that would turn the tide.
Then came the ninth. Despite a single from Kaziska, O-E failed to find their spark, ultimately being sent back into the field in just four batters. Port’s stint at the plate, on the other hand, proved fruitful early.
Cashing in on another dropped third strike, Gordon reached first before stealing to second. With one out, Aylssa Tanner’s perfectly placed bunt pushed Gordon to third as she made her way to second. Hoping for pressure on every corner, O-E intentionally walked the next Lady Gator, loading a powder keg around the diamond.
Being one swing away from victory, Evens stepped into the batters’ box. Having registered a pair of hits already, she cracked a deep, high-flying shot up against the centerfield wall. As Lady Gators streamed across home plate, the dugout erupted, rejoicing in a hard-fought and long-awaited win.
“Once we got a couple girls on base with only one out, we practice this stuff every week,” said Mark Wilcox, “so I knew we were going to pull through and make contact.”
Evens led the Lady Gators at the plate, coming away with three hits in five appearances and notching four runs batted in. Fillhart also had three hits in the win, ending 3-for-4 with one runs scored while Addison Taylor finished 2-for-5 with one run scored. In the circle, Bria Wilcox recorded 15 Ks while only giving up three walks.
For O-E, three Lady Terrors ended with three hits throughout their first taste of action. Smith went a perfect 3-for-3 with two runs scored, followed by Unverdorben and Kaziska, who both went 3-for-5 and combined for one run and one RBI. Baylee Francis found two hits in four trips to the plate, also registering 19 strikeouts through 39 batters faced.
“We held our own and we’re only going to get better. Baylee’s going to get better in the circle, our defense is going to get better behind her, hitting is going to get better,” said Kristina Francis. “I’m just really proud to wear Otto-Eldred across my chest and more proud of the eleven girls that stepped out on the field tonight.”
AT PORT ALLEGANY
Otto-Eldred 300 100 0 0 0 R:4 H:15 E:1
Port Allegany 002 011 0 0 3 R:7 H:12 E:1
Otto-Eldred: Francis (19 SO, 3 BB) and Rounsville
Port Allegany: Wilcox (15 SO, 3 BB) and Errick
