Brian Hagberg
WARREN, Pa. – For the second straight year, Warren will enter the District 10 Class 4A softball tournament as the No. 3 seed. And for the second straight year, the 4A tournament looks to be wide open.
A year ago, the Dragons were upset in the quarterfinals by 6th-seeded Franklin. The Knights went on to knock off No. 2 Hickory in the semifinals, and No. 1 Villa Maria for the D10 title.
The Dragons open the tournament this year against No. 6 General McLane at Penn State-Behrend Tuesday at 3 p.m.
Warren swept the season series against GM with a 4-2 win on April 25, and a 5-0 shutout on May 9.
Freshman Alana Stuart and sophomore Halle Kuzminski lead a quintet of Dragons hitting .400 or better with .489 and .486 averages, respectively. Stuart has hit three doubles, a triple, and four home runs and is second on the team with 14 RBIs. Kuzminski has a homer and 11 RBIs this season.
Junior Lexi Hoffman (.419) and seniors Katie Madigan (.408) and Alix Lytle (.405) are also over .400. Lytle has four doubles, a triple, and four homers to go along with her team-leading 19 RBIs. Madigan has three doubles, a triple, and a home run with 12 RBIs, while Hoffman has four doubles, a triple, and a homer with six RBIs.
Catrina Miller and Lilli Mook lead the Lancers with .357 and .341 averages, respectively. Bailey Cannon and Sarah Banta provide the power with nine doubles, four home runs, and 21 RBIs combined. Cannon handles the bulk of the pitching duties.
There will be no upset bid for Franklin this year as the defending champion Knights come in as the top seed in Class 4A. Villa Maria is at No. 2, followed by Warren at No. 3, Conneaut at No. 4, Hickory at No. 5, General McLane at No. 6, Fort LeBoeuf at No. 7, and Grove City at No. 8.
Warren, Villa, and Conneaut have all scored big wins this season, and suffered some close losses. The Dragons and Victors split the two regular season meetings, with both winning at home via a walk-off. The same is true of the two meetings between Warren and Conneaut.
Franklin looked poised to head into the postseason undefeated, but then the Knights dropped two of their final three contests (to Reynolds and Sharpsville) and needed a late rally to earn the season sweep over Hickory.
Runs are likely to be at a premium over the next six days as the Class 4A tournament features four of the top-10 pitchers in District 10.
Stuart is fourth in D10 with a 1.53 ERA. General McLane’s Bailey Cannon is right behind at a 1.63, and Franklin’s Trinity Edge sports a 1.85. Villa’s Jenna Wagner is just a shade under 2 with a 1.98.
Edge is second in D10 with 139 strikeouts, just seven in front of Cannon (132). Stuart is eighth with 114 Ks, and Wagner is tied for 10th with 95.
At 15-1, Edge sported the best record in D10. Stuart was sixth at 10-2 and Wagner eighth at 8-2.
In the other quarterfinal matchups, Allegheny College will host a doubleheader as Franklin takes on Grove City at 1 p.m. and Conneaut faces Hickory at 3 p.m. Villa and Fort LeBoeuf are set for a 6 p.m. start at Mercyhurst.
Semifinal games will be on Thursday, May 26 at sites/times to be announced, with the Franklin/Grove City winner facing the Conneaut/Hickory winner, and the Warren/GM winner taking on the Villa/Fort LeBoeuf winner.
The semifinal winners will meet for the D10 4A championship on Memorial Day, Monday, May 30 at a time/location to be announced.
Full brackets: Class 1A • Class 2A • Class 3A • Class 4A • Class 6A (Coming soon)
BREAKDOWN BY CLASSIFICATION
Class 1A
Seeding
1. Saegertown
2. Cochranton
3. West Middlesex
4. Cambridge Springs
Semifinals – Wednesday, May 25
(4) Cambridge Springs vs. (1) Saegertown at Allegheny College, 3 p.m.
(3) West Middlesex vs. (2) Cochranton at Allegheny College, 1 p.m.
Championship Game – Monday, May 30
Semifinal winners at TBA
Class 2A
Seeding
1. Sharpsville
2. Reynolds
3. Union City
4. Seneca
5. Wilmington
6. Mercer
7. Maplewood
8. Iroquois
Quarterfinals – Monday, May 23
(8) Iroquois vs. (1) Sharpsville at SRU, 5 p.m.
(7) Maplewood vs. (2) Reynolds at SRU, 3 p.m.
(6) Mercer vs. (3) Union City at Behrend, 5 p.m.
(5) Wilmington vs. (4) Seneca at Behrend, 3 p.m.
Semifinals – Wednesday, May 25
Wilmington/Seneca winner vs. Iroquois/Sharpsville winner, TBA
Mercer/Union City winner vs. Maplewood/Reynolds winner, TBA
Championship Game – Monday, May 30
Semifinal winners at TBA
Class 3A
Seeding
1. Harbor Creek
2. Jamestown
3. Fairview
4. North East
5. Sharon
6. Corry
Quarterfinals – Tuesday, May 24
(6) Corry vs. (3) Fairview at Mercyhurst, 4 p.m.
(5) Sharon vs. (4) North East at Behrend, 5 p.m.
Semifinals – Thursday, May 26
Sharon/North East winner vs. (1) Harbor Creek at TBA
Corry/Fairview winner vs. (2) Jamestown at TBA
Championship Game – Monday, May 30
Semifinal winners at TBA
Class 4A
Seeding
1. Franklin
2. Villa Maria
3. Warren
4. Conneaut
5. Hickory
6. General McLane
7. Fort LeBoeuf
8. Grove City
Quarterfinals – Tuesday, May 24
(8) Grove City vs. (1) Franklin at Allegheny College, 1 p.m.
(7) Fort LeBoeuf vs. (2) Villa Maria at Mercyhurst, 6 p.m.
(6) General McLane vs. (3) Warren at Behrend, 3 p.m.
(5) Hickory vs. (4) Conneaut at Allegheny, 3 p.m.
Semifinals – Thursday, May 26
Hickory/Conneaut winner vs. Grove City/Franklin winner, TBA
General McLane/Warre winner vs. Fort LeBoeuf/Villa Maria winner, TBA
Championship Game – Monday, May 30
Semifinal winners at TBA
CLASS 6A
Subregional Game – Wednesday, May 25 or Thursday, May 26
McDowell at District 8 Champion at TBA
Subregional Game – Tuesday, June 1
McDowell/D8 Champion winner vs. District 6 Champion at TBA
