Riley Marshall, Rachel McDonald and winning pitcher Ava Leach all drove in runs in the first inning to send Abington Heights on its way to a 7-4 victory over West Scranton in a Saturday afternoon battle of unbeatens that decided the leadership of Lackawanna League Division 1 and District 2-4 Class 5A Subregional softball.
West Scranton scored in the top of the first, but Abington Heights went ahead to stay in the bottom of the inning. Marshall also stole home to help the Comets score four times after Megan Heard got it started with a lead-off double.
Marshall and McDonald were among the four players with multiple hits for Abington Heights, which moved to 4-0 in the division and 9-0 overall.
Brynn Stiles had three hits. Heard also had two hits and Abington Heights finished with 13.
Leach struck out 10 and walked six while allowing five hits and three earned runs. She got a bases-loaded pop-up to end the game.
Olivia Dougher had a double, single and two RBI for West Scranton (3-1, 4-1). Gianna Russo singled, walked twice and scored twice.
Elsewhere Saturday:
Winning pitcher Maranda Runco homered twice as Mid Valley matched Abington Heights for the district’s best overall record when it remained unbeaten with a 7-5 victory over Dunmore.
BASEBALL
Jimmy Decker drove in three runs as host Riverside remained unbeaten with a 14-4, five-inning victory over rival Old Forge in a Lackawanna League Division 3 game.
Old Forge scored three runs in the top of the third to force a 3-3 tie. Riverside went back ahead with two runs in the bottom of the inning, took control with eight runs in the fourth and ended the game early on the 10-run rule with one more in the fifth.
Decker, who also had a single, and Thomas Day, who drove in two runs, doubled for the team’s only extra-base hits.
Winning pitcher Zach Day and Trevor Balcerzak had two hits each. Day struck out nine in four innings.
R.J. Santarsiero also drove in two runs.
Hazleton Area preserved the district’s best overall record by improving to 7-0 and 12-0 with a 10-0 shutout of Berwick in a Wyoming Valley Conference Division 1 game.
The Cougars have outscored opponents, 106-25, including 55-4 in the last five games.
BOYS TENNIS
Abington Heights posted its seventh straight 5-0 victory, beating North Pocono to match Scranton Prep at the top of the Lackawanna League with 11-0 records.
The co-leaders beat Wednesday at Abington Heights.
BOYS LACROSSE
Delaware Valley’s defense allowed Abington Heights just one shot on goal during a 13-0 shutout in a WVC game.
The shutout was the second for the Warriors, who are 3-1 and have allowed the fewest goals per game in the conference at 2.5.
Xander Kelly led the offense with four goals and two assists. Paulie Weinrich scored three goals and assisted another.
GIRLS LACROSSE
Isabella Caporuscio, Kelsey Kulak and Jillian Taleroski led the offense as Crestwood, the top-ranked team in the Riverfront Sports Power Rankings of District 2 teams, reached a new season-high for goals this season in a 20-8, non-league win over Lewisburg.
Caporuscio had six goals and an assist, Kulak four goals and two assists and Taleroski three goals and four assists.
Second-ranked Wyoming Area hit the 20-goal mark for the fourth time this season in a 22-1, WVC rout of Wilkes-Barre Area.
Emma Kelleher, Halle Kranson, Sofia Sabatini and Mackenzie Switzer led the way offensively.
Kelleher had six goals and an assist. Kranson had four goals, two assists and four groundballs. Sabatini had three goals and four assists while controlling 10 of 15 draws. Switzer had three goals, three assists and six groundballs.
Rachel Galasso scored the winning goal in overtime as Lake-Lehman edged Allentown Central Catholic, 7-6, in a non-league game.
Madison Lasinski scored four goals in the win.
BOYS VOLLEYBALL
Three unbeaten teams gathered to play matches against each other and, when they were done, there were no more perfect records in District 2.
Christopher Dock from District 1 swept Abington Heights and defeated Holy Redeemer in four sets.
Holy Redeemer defeated Abington Heights in four sets in a match that sent the WVC and Lackawanna League leaders against each other.
Holy Redeemer could see Christopher Dock again. It is a Class 2A school and Districts 1, 2 and 11 are combined this year for a subregional tournament in 2A.
