PIAA CLASS AAA SOFTBALL

Lady Raiders open states with Chucks

Walt Moody

It's funny how the tone of a season can change in the span of a couple of days.

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The Bellefonte softball team entered the postseason having lost four of its last seven games, three by a combined 20-4 score against Centre County rivals Philipsburg-Osceola, Penns Valley and Bald Eagle Area.

Lady Raiders coach Gregg Kohlhepp said at the time that his team needed to fix some things or the postseason could be very short.

Now after knocking off Indian Valley and Johnstown in the span of three days to win the District 6 Class AAA title, the Lady Raiders (14-7) are brimming with confidence. They face District 9 champion Punxsutawney (18-2) in a play-in game for the PIAA Tournament today at 5:30 p.m. at Brockway High School.

It’s hard to blame the Lady Raiders for feeling good about knocking off Johnstown, the team that ended their run of eight consecutive district crowns last season. The Lady Trojans, who came within an out of beating eventual PIAA champion Susquehannock last season, brought a 16-0 mark into the title game against Bellefonte.

The Lady Raiders jumped on Johnstown ace Megan McMillen for a run in the first and rolled to a 6-2 triumph, behind Emily Dauberman’s seven-hitter.

“That is a team that is a state finalist caliber team last year and this year probably,” Bellefonte coach Gregg Kohlhepp said of Johnstown. “If we can go knock off a team like Johnstown, you’re not going to find many teams in the state that we can’t go up against and be successful. I really think they’re starting to believe and they’re seeing the reality in the belief.”

Kohlhepp said the Lady Raiders now have their sights set on making a run in the PIAA Tournament. To do that in the main draw of the tournament they’ll have to knock off Punxsutawney in today’s play-in game.

The Lady Chucks haven’t played since May 18 in their regular-season finale against Clearfield. Punxsutawney won the District 9 title without having to play a playoff game since Clearfield and Bradford, the only two other Class AAA teams in District 9, weren’t remotely close to having a winning record.

Punxsutawney will be no pushover. The Lady Chucks feature standout pitcher Angela Burke, who tossed three consecutive shutouts, including a 2-0 blanking of District 6 Class AAAA champion State College, over three consecutive days at the end of the season.

Most of Bellefonte’s lineup is familiar with Burke. The Lady Red Raiders edged Punxsutawney and its ace 3-2 last season.

Kohlhepp said his hitters have gained confidence down the stretch in the system he and his coaches are teaching. Several different Lady Raiders have contributed in the postseason. “It’s starting to click,” he said. “What they’re seeing is that the kids that are doing it well are being more successful. At this point, everyone is buying into it.”

Kohlhepp said leadoff hitter Brittany Smith has been one of those players who have made major strides this season. “She’s really worked hard the last several months at developing different aspects of her swing to be a complete hitter,” he said of his junior second baseman. “That shows. She’s a league all-star and the top hitter on our team.”

Dauberman, a hard-luck loser in games against P-O (2-1), Penns Valley (no-hitter through 52/ 3 innings) and Bald Eagle Area (2-1 in 10 innings) has rebounded in the postseason.

She struck out seven in ending Johnstown’s season.

“I think that was a big moment for her in growing as a pitcher because we’ve seen her do it a lot,” Kohlhepp said of Dauberman (8-7). To have be on that stage and to be that successful, that was wonderful for her.

“She’s an athletic kid and has a great outlook in terms of staying the course on things. She’s kind of symbolic of our team. We’ve had those tough losses and have hung in there and battled back and certainly grew from it.”

While he’d love to see the PIAA field expanded to 32 teams like girls’ basketball, Kohlhepp said he isn’t bothered by having to play into the main draw of the 16-team PIAA tourney for the first time. He pointed out that in years past that Punxsutawney was among the teams to play in the District 6/9 tournament which including teams from both districts.

“I don’t it’s that bad for us in terms of the fact that we’re getting a game because otherwise we’re sitting around until June 1,” he said. “That’s a tough layoff. Whatever steps we have to take, either beating Punxsutawney at the district level now or the state play-in game, for us to get there we this is a game we have to win.”