Pictured above: Valley View pitcher Taylor Cawley. (Tim Drewes Photo)
By Tom Robinson, NEPASportsNation.com
EDWARDSVILLE – While Pittston Area, Tunkhannock and Mid Valley established themselves as District 2’s multiple state-title threats in softball over the past two seasons, Valley View could only sit, watch and wait its turn.
That turn came Wednesday.
Taylor Cawley threw a four-hitter and Valley View got production from the top and bottom of the batting order while ending Tunkhannock’s season with an 8-1 victory in the District 2 Class 4A softball championship game.
With Division I outfielder Riley Cunningham and number-one pitcher Cawley missing because of torn ACLs, Valley View could not keep up with Tunkhannock in last year’s district final as the Lady Tigers made their way to a second straight state championship game appearance.
The Cougars were ready for the rematch.
Cawley, who did not walk a batter, kept Tunkhannock from moving a runner past first base while building an 8-0 lead before the Lady Tigers broke the shutout in the seventh.
“Last year, I sat right there on a stool with my knee up, on crutches, wishing I could play,” said Cawley, whose 2022 season ended in the sixth game. “I’m just happy I got to play this year.”
She played and made an impact, striking out seven.
“My curveball was really working and I threw a couple changeups,” Cawley said.
Cawley had a lead before even beginning to mix her pitches.
Kalli Karwowski led off the game with a single and scored on Natalie Borosky’s double off the left-field fence. Karwowski finished with three runs, two hits and a stolen base.
Plenty of Cougars contributed offensively, including ninth hitter Ally Stafursky, who went 3-for-3 and scored twice.
“Hitting with my Dad really helped a lot,” said Stafursky, who was 5-for-6 with five runs scored in three district playoff games. “He helped me fix my swing; stay on plane. He was a big part of me finally hitting the ball consistently throughout the end of the season.”
Cunningham, the Fairleigh Dickinson-bound center fielder, had two hits.
Borosky finished with two runs and two RBI.
“Losing our two starters last year when we had high hopes was very devastating,” said Cougars coach E.J. Weston, who guided the Cougars to a state title in 2013. “We got them back, then we got some young players that filled in some gaps.
“We were really excited about opportunities this year and we really battled through our league. Our league really prepared us for today, because that was one of my concerns – the experience Tunkhannock had playing big games.”
Valley View rolled through the meeting of 21-1 teams that had won Division 1 championships in District 2’s two leagues.
The Cougars used the win to advance to host District 11 runner-up Northwestern Lehigh (20-4) Monday at 4 in a Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association tournament opener.
