The season came to an end for the Pequea Valley softball team as Section Two champion Lampeter-Strasburg erupted for 12 runs late in the game to take a 15-4 decision over the Braves on Saturday, May 14.

The Braves were coming off a non-league game with Brandywine Heights from two days earlier where the Bullets beat the Braves 19-3 - a game in which Carissa Mulder drove in two runs and Olivia Clark doubled to drive in one more.

Through the first four frames of the Lancaster-Lebanon League playoff game at Lampeter-Strasburg, the game was tied 3-3. The Pioneers put up a four-run fifth inning to make it 7-3. Though the Braves narrowed the lead to 7-4 with a run in the sixth, an eight-run rally in the home half of the sixth ended the game.

"It started off with an error, a couple of hits, another error and a couple of walks," said Doug High, the Braves' head coach. "You give up a few walks and commit a couple of errors, you are giving the other team too many batters in an inning. You are going to give up runs."

Emily Ammon scored two of the Braves' runs, scoring one on a passed ball and scoring again after stroking a triple.

"She was our leadoff hitter this year," High said. "She is a smart base runner and also had quite a few stolen bases for us."

Looking back on the season in which the Braves finished 6-12, High pointed out the three starting seniors who will be missed next year, including Ammon.

"Camryn Bailey in right field was a consistent contributor," he said. "Hailey Yothers at first base had only one error in the last two years. She will be hard to replace."

The Braves ended as the number 10 team in the District Three Class 3A power rankings - needing to finish in the top eight for district playoff qualification. The Pioneers were the third-ranked team in Class 5A.

"We could have played better defense - that would have helped a lot," High said as a look back on the 2022 campaign. "Hopefully, we will be better next year."

TENNIS

Lancaster Catholic's Connor Orr and George Brubaker were at the top of the brackets. They did after all make up the number one seed at the District Three Class AA boys' tennis doubles championships at the Hershey Racquet Club.

Sawyer Helgeson and Peter Folga of Wyomissing were the second seed. Somewhere in there surely they had the third and fourth seeds.

Wade Stoltzfus and Jazae Itegi also came into the doubles championships, which were held Friday and Saturday, May 13-14. The Pequea pair provided plenty of excitement to the very end, despite not being among the top seeds. For it was Itegi and Stoltzfus who ended up facing Brubaker and Orr in the finale on Saturday afternoon.

They won in straight sets 6-1, 6-4, against Garrett Hann and Dylan Swailes of James Buchanan on Friday. Folga and Helgeson won their quarterfinals opening set 7-5 but Itegi and Stoltzfus rebounded with 7-5, 6-1 victories. They went on to outlast Reece Girdharry and Will Stillman of Lancaster Mennonite in Saturday's semis 6-2, 7-6 (3).

Brubaker and Orr claimed the gold, however, defeating Itegi and Stoltzfus 6-3, 6-0, still enabling the doubles team from Pequea to qualify for the PIAA Class 2A state championships.

In the first round of the PIAA Class 2A team championships, Pequea Valley lost a close 3-2 match to Central Columbia on Tuesday, May 17 at the Central PA Tennis Center in South Williamsport.

Itegi and freshman Hayden Winey each won their singles matches in straight sets. Itegi took the number two singles 6-4, 6-0. Winey matched those winning margins at number three singles.

Stoltzfus bounced back from a 6-2 loss in the opening set of number one singles to tie the match with a 6-2 win. He dropped the third set 6-3, however.

At number one doubles, Cole Stoltzfus and Sam Arena proved to be a formidable pair. After a 6-1 setback though fought hard to stay alive in the second set, eventually succumbing to their opponents 7-6. Joel Peifer and Cole McEvoy came up short at the number two doubles with 6-4, 6-1 scores.