Allegany Softball
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Pikesville had won it's two previous playoff games by scores of 25-8 and 22-2.
Allegany will play the winner of tomorrow's Mardela-Bo Manor game.
Allegany will play the winner of tomorrow's Mardela-Bo Manor game.
No she hasn't but does that make them the best team in the state? I guess we will have to see what happens on Friday
It's hard to win if you can't score runs - the ace from BoManor is nationally ranked as a freshman.
But I agree, that's why you play the game.
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http://www.cecildaily.com/spotlight/article_2ed59d59-d176-53f9-8835-1f378aa7a427.html
GLEN BURNIE — Even with your back turned there’s no mistaking the sound of Maddie Penta warming up on the mound.
With every underhanded missile she throws, the Bohemia Manor freshman pitcher cuts loose a cathartic scream. And less than a second later, the blurred yellow ball finds the back of junior catcher Megan Horsey’s mitt.
The action repeats itself once the inning begins and rarely does a bat interrupt the process.
Penta will take the ball for the start of Friday’s 1A State Softball Championship at University of Maryland in College Park against Allegany hoping for a fairytale ending to a historic season in which she’s allowed no earned runs and struck out 226 batters over 93 2/3 innings.
This postseason alone she’s allowed just three total hits with 62 strikeouts over 24 scoreless innings, including a perfect, five-inning game against Havre de Grace in the North Region Section I semifinals. Her latest masterpiece, a one-hit, 16-strikeout, complete-game shutout over Mardela on Tuesday pushed Bo Manor into the state final for the first time since 2001.
“I think that she’s the most hardworking pitcher I’ve ever been around. There’s not a time that she doesn’t want to pitch,” Horsey said. “She’ll throw 20 curveballs and if they’re not good she’ll throw 20 more. She just has so much drive.
“She’s matured a lot. Coming into the season she’d always been successful, but with this group of girls, she grew up really fast and grew into our team. She came from being a shy pitcher who’s throwing in one of every three games to leading our team to the state championship game. We’re all really proud of her for that.”
The Eagles (20-2) are in pursuit of the program’s first state championship since 1995. They previously made it the state semifinals in 2014, when several seniors on the current team were freshmen. The defeat that year marked the final of three straight losses by Bo Manor in the state semifinals.
“I get a little emotional when I think about how these seniors are feeling. I want them to have the senior year that I would want to have,” Penta said following a 14-0, five-inning win over McDonough in the region final. “I love pitching. It’s pretty thrilling and I enjoy being with my team and going to all these places. [Winning] in College Park. I feel like that would be the ultimate freshman experience.”
On Friday, Penta will dig her cleats into the rubber and face an Allegany offense that has scored double-digit runs in all but one playoff contest, including a 27-0, five-inning win over Pikesville in the state semifinals.
The Eagles will aim to be the second straight team from Cecil County to win the 1A State softball crown after Perryville defeated Boonsboro in last year’s title game, capturing the first state crown in program history.
“Honestly, I didn’t think it would take this long to get back [into the state tournament],” admitted Bo Manor senior second baseman Rachel Jones, who pitched in the team’s states semifinal game in 2014. “We all play so well together and I’ve been playing with these girls since I can’t remember when. It’s going to be so weird not playing with them so I hope we end the season with a win.”
After missing last season with a knee injury, center fielder Erin Horsey returned for her senior season. She started as a freshman in 2014 and had a key assist in the Eagles' East Region Final win that year.
“This is a very rewarding experience. It is something I have dreamed of since I was 8 years old. It's a very big deal to us seniors because it's our last year, and for me it's my last year ever playing softball again. I think our team is full of so much heart and passion so for us to go this far it's such an amazing experience for us. It's unbelievable. I have played alongside these other four seniors my entire life. So for us to go this far, together ... not many people have that same story,” she said. “Being injured last year with my ACL was such a depressing thing for me. I felt defeated and so upset that I couldn't be out there contributing with my teammates. It was tough sitting on the bench every game but watching them out there made me so proud. To be back out here with them senior year is unforgettable.
“This injury has made me into a better athlete. I learned never to take sports for granted because it can be taken away just in a matter of three seconds. To be taking an entire year off and going to the state championship my senior year, it's something I will remember forever. It goes to show that if you work hard it definitely pays off.”
Senior third baseman Taylor Abshagen, who earned All-County Player of the Year honors as a sophomore following a breakout freshman campaign on the 2014 squad, has clubbed a pair of homers in four playoff games.
“All around, softball in Harford County and our county has improved a lot so it’s been tough, but I think it was good to start that way, then work two years to get here and it’s awesome that we’re finally ending this way,” Abshagen said. “Our chemistry has gotten a lot stronger throughout the season and I think we’ve learned to work really well together on the field and off the field. We push each other, know each other’s limits and we know how to encourage each other and what it takes to have the right motivation.
“It’s an amazing feeling and not a lot of athletes get this opportunity, so for us to have this opportunity and one more shot at it before we graduate is awesome. I wouldn’t want to graduate any other way.”
Follow Jordan Schatz on Twitter: @Jordan_Whig
GLEN BURNIE — Even with your back turned there’s no mistaking the sound of Maddie Penta warming up on the mound.
With every underhanded missile she throws, the Bohemia Manor freshman pitcher cuts loose a cathartic scream. And less than a second later, the blurred yellow ball finds the back of junior catcher Megan Horsey’s mitt.
The action repeats itself once the inning begins and rarely does a bat interrupt the process.
Penta will take the ball for the start of Friday’s 1A State Softball Championship at University of Maryland in College Park against Allegany hoping for a fairytale ending to a historic season in which she’s allowed no earned runs and struck out 226 batters over 93 2/3 innings.
This postseason alone she’s allowed just three total hits with 62 strikeouts over 24 scoreless innings, including a perfect, five-inning game against Havre de Grace in the North Region Section I semifinals. Her latest masterpiece, a one-hit, 16-strikeout, complete-game shutout over Mardela on Tuesday pushed Bo Manor into the state final for the first time since 2001.
“I think that she’s the most hardworking pitcher I’ve ever been around. There’s not a time that she doesn’t want to pitch,” Horsey said. “She’ll throw 20 curveballs and if they’re not good she’ll throw 20 more. She just has so much drive.
“She’s matured a lot. Coming into the season she’d always been successful, but with this group of girls, she grew up really fast and grew into our team. She came from being a shy pitcher who’s throwing in one of every three games to leading our team to the state championship game. We’re all really proud of her for that.”
The Eagles (20-2) are in pursuit of the program’s first state championship since 1995. They previously made it the state semifinals in 2014, when several seniors on the current team were freshmen. The defeat that year marked the final of three straight losses by Bo Manor in the state semifinals.
“I get a little emotional when I think about how these seniors are feeling. I want them to have the senior year that I would want to have,” Penta said following a 14-0, five-inning win over McDonough in the region final. “I love pitching. It’s pretty thrilling and I enjoy being with my team and going to all these places. [Winning] in College Park. I feel like that would be the ultimate freshman experience.”
On Friday, Penta will dig her cleats into the rubber and face an Allegany offense that has scored double-digit runs in all but one playoff contest, including a 27-0, five-inning win over Pikesville in the state semifinals.
The Eagles will aim to be the second straight team from Cecil County to win the 1A State softball crown after Perryville defeated Boonsboro in last year’s title game, capturing the first state crown in program history.
“Honestly, I didn’t think it would take this long to get back [into the state tournament],” admitted Bo Manor senior second baseman Rachel Jones, who pitched in the team’s states semifinal game in 2014. “We all play so well together and I’ve been playing with these girls since I can’t remember when. It’s going to be so weird not playing with them so I hope we end the season with a win.”
After missing last season with a knee injury, center fielder Erin Horsey returned for her senior season. She started as a freshman in 2014 and had a key assist in the Eagles' East Region Final win that year.
“This is a very rewarding experience. It is something I have dreamed of since I was 8 years old. It's a very big deal to us seniors because it's our last year, and for me it's my last year ever playing softball again. I think our team is full of so much heart and passion so for us to go this far it's such an amazing experience for us. It's unbelievable. I have played alongside these other four seniors my entire life. So for us to go this far, together ... not many people have that same story,” she said. “Being injured last year with my ACL was such a depressing thing for me. I felt defeated and so upset that I couldn't be out there contributing with my teammates. It was tough sitting on the bench every game but watching them out there made me so proud. To be back out here with them senior year is unforgettable.
“This injury has made me into a better athlete. I learned never to take sports for granted because it can be taken away just in a matter of three seconds. To be taking an entire year off and going to the state championship my senior year, it's something I will remember forever. It goes to show that if you work hard it definitely pays off.”
Senior third baseman Taylor Abshagen, who earned All-County Player of the Year honors as a sophomore following a breakout freshman campaign on the 2014 squad, has clubbed a pair of homers in four playoff games.
“All around, softball in Harford County and our county has improved a lot so it’s been tough, but I think it was good to start that way, then work two years to get here and it’s awesome that we’re finally ending this way,” Abshagen said. “Our chemistry has gotten a lot stronger throughout the season and I think we’ve learned to work really well together on the field and off the field. We push each other, know each other’s limits and we know how to encourage each other and what it takes to have the right motivation.
“It’s an amazing feeling and not a lot of athletes get this opportunity, so for us to have this opportunity and one more shot at it before we graduate is awesome. I wouldn’t want to graduate any other way.”
Follow Jordan Schatz on Twitter: @Jordan_Whig
Not the numbers but #5 From Alco had a pretty stellar season as well. Give credit where credit is due the BH pitcher is the real deal, but The Allegany team is the real deal as well. BH was the better team yesterday. Trust me Allegany will be back
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