Confidence builder
Tornado keep their poise in 8-3 win over Raiders

By Sam Tallarico
Eagle Staff Writer

BUTLER TWP - Butler's softball game against Seneca Valley Thursday was all about confidence the Golden Tornado kept it while the Raiders left still looking for it.
Butler jumped out to an early 3-0 lead in the first inning, saw the Raiders tie the game, but tacked on three runs in the fifth inning. A Jenna Geibel two-run home run in the sixth inning helped the Tornado to pull away in an 8-3 victory.
"I'm really proud of the girls," said Butler coach Lori Kline. "They maintained their confidence from the beginning. They got it right away. They got scores, they got runners on and got runners in.
"They stayed up on the game. They were behind each other and picked each other up. This was the best game I've seen us play all year," Kline added.
The Raiders have only one senior on the team, along with six sophomores and five freshmen, but SV coach George Trew wasn't making excuses.
"You expect a little (inexperience), but not that much. We're better than that," said Trew. "We'll have five of them for three more years and 11 for two more. We'll build from that, but we need to get our confidence back and we'll be fine."
Butler (6-3, 2-3) staked starting pitcher Angie Reddick to a 3-0 lead in the first inning when, with one out, Jocelyn Bachman reached on an error, then moved to third base on Reddick's double.
Geibel earned a walk to load the bases before Bachman scored on a fielder's choice. Amanda Skidmore then lined a two-run single.
"We gave up free passes, errors," said Trew. "When they got a hit, it wasn't one run, but three. Those first three runs were unearned. Now, you see yourself down 3-0."
The Raiders (2-7, 1-4) responded with a pair of runs in the top of the second when Julia Vandrak opened the frame with a walk, then Lauren Davies added an infield single. Sara Mantick's sacrifice bunt advanced the runners before Megan Buletko's RBI single.
Kelsey Mislan grounded into a fielder's choice, which allowed Davies to break for the plate and score to make it a one-run game.
Butler nearly increased its lead by loading the bases with one out in the third, but Skidmore grounded into a 1-2-3 double play.
The Raiders found themselves in a similar situation in the fourth when they loaded the bases with one out, but Reddick struck out Kelsey Mislan and Alyssa Miller to end the threat.
The Raiders tied the game when Alyssa DiMaria had a one-out infield single, then Ashlie Kuhn hit a run-scoring double off the base of the center-field fence.
From there, the Tornado offense took over, sending nine batters to the plate in the fifth inning.
Geibel's RBI double plated Reddick, then Geibel scored on a rundown that involved Erica Thrower, who had just reached on a walk. Butler added its sixth run later in the inning when another error gave the Tornado a three-run cushion.
Reddick made the lead stand despite allowing a pair of runners in the sixth and seventh innings with two outs
"With her mentality, she loves that challenge," said Kline. "She battled right through it. She doesn't get rattled easily. She's a strong pitcher."
Reddick also smacked a double, a triple and had a pair of walks while Geibel added three RBI with a single, a double, a home run and a walk. Skidmore had two singles and two RBI.

Seneca Valley 020 010 0 3 7 3
Butler 300 032 x 8 9 1
W: Angie Reddick (7 IP) 5 K, 5 BB. L: Ashlie Kuhn (5+ IP) 6 K, 5 BB.
Seneca Valley (2-7, 1-4): Alyssa DiMaria 1B; Ashlie Kuhn 2-2B, RBI; Lauren Davies 2-1B; Megan Buletko RBI 1B; Erin Mullen 1B; Kelsey Mislan RBI
Butler (6-3, 2-3): Karen Cumberledge 1B; Angie Reddick 2B, 3B; Jenna Geibel 1B, 2B, HR, 3 RBI; Erica Thrower 1B, RBI; Amanda Skidmore 2-1B, 2 RBI