Loss of star doesn’t slow NA
Tri-State Sports & News Service
When Rachel Martindale sustained a year-ending torn ACL during the North Allegheny girls basketball season, it sent a shock wave all the way to the softball team. The prevailing thought was the Tigers would be in trouble without their star player who slugged her way to a .442 batting average with five home runs and 31 RBIs last year. Think again. While Martindale’s injury certainly hurt, North Allegheny has pulled together and gotten off to a nice start. Through Wednesday, the Tigers were 6-4 overall and sitting atop Class 6A Section 3 with a 4-1 mark.
“I think the one characteristic we really have this year is we truly are a team,” said North Allegheny coach Rick Meister. “We have people that are so willing to accept their roles and make their contributions. They’ve stepped up and showed a willingness to do their job.”
When Martindale went down, it set off a chain reaction of moves. Kristen Chomos went from third base to fill the void at shortstop, and other players moved around as well.
“So far, she has done a dynamic job,” Meister said of Chomos. “That has allowed us to fill in at third and fit in all the other puzzle pieces.”
The one place that hasn’t been affected is the pitcher’s circle. The rotation of juniors Ashley Adams and Brooke Serbin, and sophomore Sophia Dollard has been solid.
Like the fielders behind them, the pitchers have stepped up when called upon. Serbin pitched a gem to secure a 3-0 victory against New Jersey’s Blair Academy at the Disney tournament March 24. Dollard fired a twohitter to beat Butler April 12. Adams struck out five in a win against section-rival Shaler April 14.
Adams doubles as one of the Tigers’ best hitters. The offense is averaging 6.8 runs per game and 9.2 against instate competition. After going 1-2 at the season-opening tournament in Florida, the Tigers have racked up a 5-1 mark against area competition. Their only blemish was a 7-6 loss to Connellsville.
“We have bonded together,” Meister said. “On any given day, you don’t know who is going to contribute. Thus far, when we needed someone to contribute, we got it.”
Of course, North Allegheny is a large school district with a good feeder system. It’s not much of a surprise that talented players were waiting to get their shot. Couple that with the motivation born from doubt, and it adds up to a good start for the Tigers.
“I think if you’re an athlete and anyone dismisses your chances because of an injury or unfortunate circumstance, you kind of take that to heart,” Meister said. “We don’t look at it as how far can we get without Rachel in the lineup. We look at it as how far can we get as the North Allegheny softball team.”
Ellwood City
Another team that had a question mark as the season got underway was Ellwood City. The Wolverines lost star pitcher Sklya Greco, the PostGazette’s Class 3A player of the year, to graduation. The Wolverines’ all-time leader in strikeouts, innings pitched and ERA now plays at Seton Hill.
How do you replace that kind of pitching talent? So far, Ellwood City (3-3, 3-2 Class 3A Section 2) is providing plenty of run support by plating an average of 12.3 runs per game.
Their lowest output of the season was five runs and they have tallied double-digits in four of six games.
Seton LaSalle
The Rebels are on a hot streak and so is pitcher Jada Simon. Simon, a senior, has led Seton LaSalle (6-1, 4-0 Class 2A Section 1) to five consecutive victories by going 5-0 with 36 strikeouts in her past 31 innings. During that time, she has allowed just two earned runs. Simon has not allowed an earned run in her past three games, during which she has faced 82 batters and struck out 25 in 21 innings.
“Jada is playing with a lot of confidence this season,” said Seton LaSalle coach Cindy Beauregard.