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Bucktail’s dream season continues, drops St. John Neumann 7-1

Bucktail coach Mike Poorman was all smiles as he congratulated Rachel Goss (left) and Emily Cross (right) after the ‘Gatorade Bath’. (For The Express/Kevin Rauch)

RENOVO – Overachieving became the definition of the 2017 Bucktail Lady Bucks softball season as a group of freshmen carried the team to the school’s first ever post-season.

The group continued to play well beyond their years on Tuesday as Bucktail knocked off St. John Neumann, 7-1, to move into a Thursday match up against North East Bradford.

Playoff buzz combined with an untypical amount of fans could have allowed some nerves to be buzzing on such a young team. That seemingly all went away in the top of the first when freshman catcher Emily Cross made an early play that helped to swing the momentum as the Lady Bucks realized that although it was their first playoff game, it was also theirs to win.

After lead-off batter Cheyenne Danneker singled to get on base, she tried stealing second with one out. Cross’ throw to second arrived well before the Lady Knight as Bucktail shortstop Kayli Casper took the throw and actually waited for the slide with the tag.

Fellow freshman and pitching ace Myka Poorman threw a third strike on the very next play getting the Lady Bucks out of the top of the first inning and full of confidence that the game was not too big for a group of mostly 9th graders.

Bucktail led 1-0 in the bottom of the third when Cross would again ignite her team with the biggest hit of the game.

With Anna Cowfer on third and Poorman on first, Cross crushed a shot down the left field line as Poorman was running from the crack of the bat. The two RBI double put the Lady Bucks up 3-0.

Coach Mike Poorman asked his daughter before the game to allow the ball to be put into play, not to try and do too much and the hurler answered, letting her team play defense behind her.

Following Danneker’s lead-off hit, Poorman would allow just two more hits the rest of the game with the defense playing near perfect behind her. “That was the best that we played defensively all season,” Coach Poorman would say following the game.

Anne Weller had the Lady Knights’ biggest hit of the game in the top of the fourth, a shot to dead center that was headed to the fence, but the defense had Anna Cowfer playing deep and on point to make the dramatic snag.

Poorman would again help her own cause through her base running when she stood on second with Cross again coming to the plate. Cross hit a ball back to the mound with enough spin on it that Neumann pitcher Weller couldn’t handle. As Weller watched Cross make it to first, Poorman was sprinting from second to give the Lady Bucks a 4-0 lead.

St. John Neumann capitalized on two Bucktail errors in the top of the 6th when Danneker scored on a fielder’s choice. The Lady Knights were thinking rally, but Rachel Goss tracked down a line-drive in right field ending the inning.

Bucktail set the score in the bottom of the sixth as Casper scored on a Poorman single before Cross again came up with another two RBI double to left field, scoring Maria D’Onofrio and Anna Cowfer.

With a 7-1 lead, Poorman retired the first two batters of the inning before a short roller back to the mound allowed her to end the game, giving the Lady Bucks their first ever win in their first postseason game in school history.

“As a coach, this is hard not to get emotional,” said Mike Poorman following the game. “We had five freshmen starters and two more took at bats. To win in the school’s first ever playoff game is unbelievable right now.”

As for his young daughter picking up the win, the coach and father said that it was her fastball that they counted on all day.

“She (Myka) was throwing some off speed stuff early, but once we took a 1-0 lead we just decided to let her pound it with fastballs. It was fine if they put the ball in play, we just asked that she didn’t give up walks,” he explained.

Myka scattered just three hits, two to Danneker, and three walks all to Kaylin Brown.

Not lost on Poorman or any of the players was the crowd in Farwell, as fans lined up from the backstop all the way down the right field line – a site likely never seen before at a Bucktail softball game.

“That was phenomenal, what an experience,” the coach said of the fans. “We had players and parents of my Aftershock team, many from around the area. It was special to see so many people, but even better that we could get a win in front of them.”

The Lady Bucks (10-8) will now take on a 16-4 North East Bradford on Thursday at 4:00 PM at the Moser Complex in Turbotville.

Bucktail 0 1 2 0 1 3-7

SJN 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 – 1

Poorman: 96 total pitches, 3 hits, 1 un-earned run, 4K, 3BB.

Weller: 131 total pitches, 6 hits, 7 runs, 6BB, 1HBP, and 8K.

Bucktail: Cross 3 for 4, two doubles, five RBI; Poorman 1 for 1, 3 walks, 2 runs; Emma Intallura 1 for 3, double, run; Anna Cowfer 1 for 4, 2 runs; Casper 1 for 2, run; D’Onofrio 0 for 3, run; Goss 0-3; Amanda Tyrrell 0-3; Renee Werts 0-1; Tessa Cowfer 0-1.

St. John Neumann: Danneker 2 for 3, run; Maria Helminiak 1 for 3; Jenny Mertes 0-3; Brown 0-0 3BB; Shayna McNamee 0-3; Sarah Harbach 0-3; Weller 0-3; Brianna Minnier 0-3; Bianca Lilley 0-3.

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