CENTRE COUNTY — The Bellefonte and State College softball teams can place another District 6 championship trophy in their respective school trophy cases.
Bellefonte captured their second straight District 6 Class 4A title with a 5-2 win over Juniata on May 21 at O’Leary Fields.
The day before, State College captured its third straight Class 6A title by beating Altoona for the third time this season, 5-1. The game was moved from Mount Alloysius College to the artificial turf at Central Cambria High School.
Unfortunately for Bald Eagle Area and Philipsburg-Osceola, their playoff journeys ended in the District 6 Class 3A semifinals.
Second-seeded P-O dropped a 6-5 heartbreaker in eight innings to third-seeded Westmont Hilltop on May 21 at the Curtis Park Athletic Complex. Fourth-seeded BEA ran into a buzzsaw in a 10-0 loss in five innings to top-seeded Bedford at Claysburg-Kimmel on the same day.
Here’s a closer look at the games:
BELLEFONTE’S HERR WHIFFS 19
Bellefonte only had four hits, but the Lady Red Raiders made the most of their opportunities as they rode a four-run fifth inning and a pitching gem by sophomore Abby Herr to the title.
Herr dominated Juniata from start to finish as she struck out a whopping 19 batters, amassing 93 strikes in a 136-pitch effort. She tossed a two-hitter and walked four batters.
“Abby did a really a great job pitching,” Bellefonte coach Erica DeVinney said. “She works incredibly hard and she is very dedicated to her team and the sport.”
Bellefonte (10-10) led 1-0 going into the fifth inning, but Aralynn Carson reached on an error to start the inning. With one out, Sloan Moore delivered the big hit of the inning – pounding a two-run home run to center field.
Riley Santostefano worked a walk off of Juniata pitcher Destiney Yohn, and Adrienne Masullo singled to center field. Peyton Rimmey followed with a double to right field to chase home Santostefano and Masullo to make the score 5-0.
“That was a huge inning for us,” DeVinney said. “It was the inning we really needed to get ahead and for the girls to get hyped up for the rest of the game.”
Juniata (2-15) didn’t dent Herr’s armor until it scored two runs in the top of the seventh inning. But Herr prevented further damage to earn the win.
“It feels really good,” DeVinney said of the district title win. “The team was really excited, and they have worked really hard to get to this point and to come out on top.”
It was the second year in a row the teams played each other in the title game. Bellefonte won last year, 6-1.
The Lady Red Raiders were to play at District 8 champion (Pittsburgh City League) Carrick on May 26 in a subregional game.
Traditionally, the Lady Red Raiders stomp whoever the District 8 team is. They hammered Carrick, 16-1, in last year’s game and 21-1 two years ago. Bellefonte blasted Obama Academy, 27-0, in 2023.
The winner moves on to the first round of the state playoffs on June 1 against the District 7 champion.
STATE COLLEGE SHINES
It’s been quite a season for State College, which found itself in an awkward position after a sudden coaching change from Scott Kaminske to interim coach to Vanessa Gordon on April 13.
But the Lady Little Lions had a deep roster and history on their side. State College easily beat Altoona twice during the regular season, 13-1 on April 16 and 14-4 on April 23.
The Lady Little Lions had won two straight District 6 titles going into the game, including a 5-4 victory over Altoona last year. State College beat Mifflin County, 6-1, in 2024.
Leadoff hitter Kendall Schenck had four of State College’s nine hits, including two doubles. No. 2 hitter Kara Rhinehart went 2-for-4 with a double and a two-run home run over the center field fence in the sixth inning.
State College ace pitcher Paige Moriarta tossed a four-hitter, struck out 14 and walked four. The run Altoona scored was unearned.
The Lady Little Lions (10-7) were to play District 8/10 champion McDowell (15-6) in a subregional on May 26 at Slippery Rock University. The game was played after the Centre County Gazette went to press. District 10’s McDowell hammered District 8’s Taylor Allderdice, 20-2, to advance to the subregional.
State College lost to McDowell, 5-2, in last year’s subregional game.
The winner advances to the first round of the state playoffs against the District 7 champion on June 1.
P-O RALLIES, FORCES EXTRA INNINGS
Philipsburg-Osceola started the semifinal on fire, scoring three runs in the bottom of the first inning, but then the Lady Mounties couldn’t take advantage of their 11 hits off of Abby Rozich until the bottom of the seventh inning.
With two outs and trailing, 5-3, a Maddyx Hampton single and an error scored two runs to force extra innings. But in the top of the eighth, Westmont’s Addy Dunbar knocked in the go-ahead run with a double off of P-O’s ace pitcher Macie Bush.
In the bottom of the eighth, Haylie Koptchak reached second base with one out, but Dunbar was able to work out of trouble with a pop-up and fly ball out to end P-O’s season with an 18-3 record.
P-O leadoff hitter Emily Gustkey went 2-for-5 with a first-inning solo home run. Bush also went 2-for-5 and scored a run from the No. 2 spot in the order. Mia Butler doubled, while Morgan Vaughn scored two runs.
Bush, only a freshman, struck out four, walked none and gave up 10 hits and six earned runs.
It was the last game for senior starters Gustkey, Butler and Hampton.
BEA HELD TO 3 HITS
Bald Eagle Area, which avenged two losses to Huntingdon with a quarterfinal win, could only muster three hits and one walk against Bedford pitcher Emma Byers, who struck out six in the shutout.
The young Lady Eagles did have two extra base hits — a triple by Hayley Simpson and a double by Maelee Yoder.
Bedford scored in every inning, including a five-run second inning.
It was the last game for senior starters Addisyn Burns, Simpson and Casey Angellotti.
BEA finished with a 15-7 record. Bedford was scheduled to play Westmont Hilltop on May 27 at Claysburg-Kimmel.
