Bucktail picks up big win at West Branch, 10-7; Raider showdown Monday
By Bees O’Brien
ALLPORT, PA – Whenever your team can pick up a win over a bigger classification in any sport in District 4, it’s huge in regards to the power points system that the district uses to determine playoff seedings. Softball is the same and that is exactly what Bucktail did on the road Thursday afternoon in Allport against 2A West Branch. The Lady Warriors are in their final year of their 2A cycle and will drop back down to 1A next season. The Lady Bucks would gobble up those power points with a 10-7 victory, but it was far from their normal blow-out victories that fans have come to know in recent years.
It appeared that things were about to be business as usual for the Lady Bucks from the very start. Bucktail (5-0) would start off scorching on offense once again and they were ignited by returning senior Jordan Burrows. Burrows, Bucktail’s leadoff hitter was sidelined for the Muncy and Benton games this week due to injury. She would start Bucktail off by drawing a walk.
Mak Wagner and Emma Poorman delivered RBI hits in the first inning and the Lady Bucks jumped out to a 4-0 lead on West Branch.
West Branch (2-5), who haven’t seen the Bucktail softball program on the field since the mid 90’s, would not back down. The Lady Warriors would find success against starting pitcher Emma Poorman in the bottom of the first and score a run.
Down 4-1, West Branch starting pitcher Nelson would go to work. She would contain the highly potent Bucktail offense through her 5 1/3 innings in the circle, striking out 8 batters and holding an offense that has recently lit up the scoreboard in their first four victories. In those wins Bucktail has scored 15, 27, 11 and 28 runs. Nelson held them to just 7 runs.
The Lady Bucks never trailed in the contest, but a fourth inning run by West Branch made things interesting.
Leading only 4-2 heading to the fifth inning, Bucktail’s offense would explode again. A 5-run inning now put the Lady Bucks up 9-2. The Lady Warriors would not go away however.
West Branch would score two runs in their half of the fifth and now trailed just by five runs at 9-4. Visiting Bucktail added another run in the top of the sixth to extend their lead to 10-4.
Still the Lady Warriors refused to die. They would knock in three more runs off Mak Wagner in the bottom of the seventh. Wagner, who was pitching in relief of Poorman managed to eventually retire the pesky West Branch squad and end the game, 10-7.
Wagner and Matti Mason had big nights at the plate for Bucktail. They both went 3 for 4 with Wagner adding a double and 2 RBI’s. Returning Jordan Burrows went 2 for 3 and scored 3 runs. Burrows’ return was huge for Bucktail with Montgomery invading Farwell on Monday.
Alexis Lowery and Lily Francis each collected a pair of hits for Bucktail. Haley Burrows and Emma Poorman each collected a hit for the Lady Bucks. Poorman collected another win in the circle and also contributed 2 RBI’s
The Lady Bucks will be tested on Monday when they face Montgomery. The Lady Raiders will be fresh off their 4-0 victory over Muncy on Thursday night. Game time is set for 4:30 p.m. and will be livestreamed on The Record Online.
