Burrell softball team wants long ride to start deep run

By: Michael Love
Sunday, June 4, 2023 | 4:29 PM

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Burrell High School graduation is Thursday evening.

Four senior members of the Bucs softball team who will be receiving their diplomas — Abbie Larko, Alanna Miller, Cassidy Novak and Katie Armstrong — hope the day is a busy one as it also is the day of the second round of the PIAA Class 3A playoffs.

But to reach and cross that bridge, the senior quartet, along with the rest of the Burrell team, have to take care of some business Monday afternoon.

The Bucs, the No. 3 seed from the WPIAL, open state tournament play with a long bus ride east — three hours and nearly 170 miles — to Juniata High School to face the District 6 champion Indians.

First pitch is set for 4 p.m.

“We’re all happy to still be playing,” sophomore catcher Bella Stewart said.

“Honestly, it doesn’t matter the distance we have to travel. We just want to keep playing together. Hopefully, we’ll have a few more games after this one. We’re just excited to get out there and play.”

Burrell is the only Alle-Kiski Valley baseball or softball team still alive for the state playoffs and is one of 18 WPIAL softball teams preparing for a first-round game.

“We got to experience (the PIAA playoffs) last year, and we wanted to get back,” Stewart said. “It was great motivation for us. Knowing that it’s June, we are still playing where other teams we beat don’t have that same opportunity, it is a special feeling to share with everyone.”

Burrell’s experience, veteran coach Rick Nealer said, has been a factor each step of the way in the regular season and postseason.

“Just like any playoff game, there is that pressure to play well,” he said. “But the girls know what to expect. They’re excited. They want to get back on the field and play.”

With only one senior lost from last year’s team, eight of the nine in the lineup experienced the long trip for last year’s PIAA first-round game.

The four seniors, Stewart and sophomores Pyper Ferres, Brae Jones and Sabrina Hoover didn’t let the extended bus ride affect them as they put it all together to shut out District 10 champion Villa Maria, 6-0, at Penn State Behrend.

Armstrong, Stewart, Ferres and Jones tallied RBIs in that win, and Armstrong allowed one hit and no walks while striking out 17.

Burrell’s 3-0 win last week over Waynesburg Central in the third-place game at Gateway wasn’t a win-or-go-home scenario for the state playoffs as the Bucs had clinched with their quarterfinal victory over Mohawk.

But it did move the team up one spot in the seedings from the WPIAL, helped it bounce back from the semifinal loss to Avonworth and provided momentum as it focused in on its new goal of a state-tournament run.

“We all hit the ball hard and also got on base however we could to get the runs we needed,” Stewart said of the Waynesburg victory.

“Katie’s pitching and making good plays defensively really helped, too. Waynesburg was a really good team, but we just were able to come together and get a nice win.”

While there is plenty of information on Juniata (22-3) that could be gathered and studied — and Burrell is well aware of the talent the Indians have at pitcher in Fordham commit Liz Gaisior and elsewhere through the lineup — the focus in practice the past week has been on making sure everything is secure within Burrell boundaries.

“I’ve seen a few things, but we know whoever we face, it is good competition, and we want that,” Stewart said. “At this point, we want to go in feeling we are at our best. I think it will be a pretty good game.”

Nealer and Stewart both brought up the often-used but key phrase “One game at a time” when talking about focusing in on a playoff journey.

For Burrell, a potential second-round matchup and another rematch with Avonworth is possible. But the Bucs know Juniata will have something to say about it.

“You don’t get to this point very often,” Nealer said. “That is what we keep telling the girls. We want them to cherish these moments and make the most of it. We had a really good week of practice. They put the work in. Now, hopefully, they can see the rewards for that hard work.”

Michael Love is a TribLive reporter covering sports in the Alle-Kiski Valley and the eastern suburbs of Pittsburgh. A Clearfield native and a graduate of Westminster (Pa.), he joined the Trib in 2002 after spending five years at the Clearfield Progress. He can be reached at mlove@triblive.com.

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