Pittston Area softball coach Frank Parente talks to his team prior to Tuesday’s practice. The Patriots will play Armstrong for the PIAA Class 5A state championship at 2:30 p.m. Thursday at Penn State University. The game will be televised live on PCN.
John Erzar | Times Leader
Gianna Adams
pitcher
Ava Callahan
catcher
Taylor Baiera
first base
Bella Giardina
second base
Tori Para
shortstop
Skylar Borthwick
third base
Maura Mihalka
left field
Sage Weidlich
center field
Kallie Booth
right field
Marina Antal
designated player
The hardest part of Pittston Area softball’s season finale might not be whether the Patriots win or lose Thursday in the PIAA Class 5A state championship game.
It’s that a magical season — and the high school careers of three senior captains — will be just a memory.
Shortstop Tori Para, center fielder Sage Weidlich and third baseman Skylar Borthwick will take the field for the final time with their teammates as District 2 champion Pittston Area (24-0) plays District 7 champion Armstrong (23-4) at 2:30 p.m. at Penn State University’s Beard Field.
The game was originally scheduled for 4 p.m., but the PIAA moved up all three softball games to avoid possible thunderstorms in the late afternoon. All three will be shown live on PCN. Thursday’s baseball schedule remained the same and those games will be shown on tape delay on PCN starting at 6:30 p.m.
“I told my assistant Anthony (Bellino), ‘You know, even if we took this down and won the state title, I want to ask for more games so I don’t have to be without these seniors,’ ” said Pittston Area coach Frank Parente, who is a fifth grade teacher at rival Wyoming Area. “They’ll be replaced, but they are irreplaceable, if that makes any sense.”
Makes sense considering two of them are hitting .500 or better. Para is batting .529 with nine homers and 41 RBI. Weidlich is hitting .500 with six homers and 29 RBI. Borthwick (.356, 19 RBI) has provided a steady bat in the lower half of a very strong batting order. All three are excellent with the glove as well.
“I’m definitely one of the quiet leaders,” Borthwick said. “I feel if the leaders are all on, the team is more calm. If a leader makes a mistake, it’s nerve-wracking. but if we stay calm the whole team stays calm.”
After a 13-0 victory over South Western to start states, Pittston Area squeezed out a 3-2 win over defending state champion Lampeter-Strasburg and followed with a 8-4 victory over Oxford in the semifinals. Weidlich and Para hit two-run home runs early vs. Oxford.
“At practice, we’re like ‘We have to jump on them early,’” Weidlich said. “We always want to do that. When we jump on them earlier, it’s a great foundation to be calm, cool and collected. So when Tori had that two-run home run and I had that two-run home run and it was already a 4-0 deficit, I loved it. I loved everything about it.”
Pittston Area has never won a state championship in any team sport. Para feels the Patriots aren’t only playing for their school but for District 2 as well.
“Definitely,” Para said. “After every team we’ve beaten, the other team was like ‘We’re rooting for you guys. We want you to win everything.’ And that’s so motivating and so nice to hear from the other team.”
Armstrong has some unfinished business at Penn State. The River Hawks lost 10-7 to Lampeter-Strasburg in last year’s title game. The offense is highlighted by power hitters Jenna Clontz and Jesse Pugh and speedy lead-off hitter Emma “Smoke” Smerick. They averaged nearly 11 runs per game entering a 3-2 semifinal win vs. Penn-Trafford.
Pittston Area sophomore pitcher Gianna Adams will try to quell the Armstrong bats. She has 204 strikeouts in 121 innings this season. Her fastball has been clocked in the low 60s, which is roughly the same as a 87-88 mph fastball in baseball. Armstrong pitcher Cameryn Sprankle throws a click below that, but has a nasty change-up she likes to sprinkle in.
“We carried our wins into the next game,” Adams said. “We never get overconfident and I love that about our team. We always play calm and cool, but winning a big game like West Scranton you get your energy up and you know what your capable of after a game like that.”
Adams no-hit West Scranton in a 1-0 victory in the D2 championship game. The same West Scranton team which won the title in 2021 and ended Pittston Area’s season in the semifinals that year.
“Last year, we thought we had a team good enough to do what we’re doing this year,” Parente said. “West came here and beat us 3-1, and we had to sleep on that for a year.”
