“It’s been a long journey and I told them I’d just like to have an opportunity to win that last game,” O’Malley said. “That’s been our goal.”

Well, South has earned that opportunity and will try reaching that goal this morning at Penn State when it plays Neshannock for the Class AA state championship.

South (18-5) understands scaling that ladder and winning the program’s first state championship since 2003 is a daunting task. That would go for any state title game, but especially against Neshannock, the team which defeated it, 12-2 in last year’s final. The Lancers also are 99-1 the last four years and are going for their third state title during that span.

South, however also is an excellent team, its second straight state championship appearance driving home that point. This is where South wanted to be, playing the team it longed for a second chance against. For a squad which always has embraced challenges, this is exciting.

DAVE KENNEDY/Sun-Gazette South’s Alizabeth Schuler waits for play to resume as Jaidon Nogay of Neshannock celebrates a 3-RBI double during the 2024 PIAA Class AA championship game at Penn State. Neshannock won 12-2.

“I know it’s a very difficult opponent but anything can happen in sports. We don’t have to beat them 10 times. We just have to be the better team that day,” O’Malley said. “We have a lot of good players, too.”

South has last year’s experience to lean on as well. South now has seen Neshannock first-hand and has a better feel for how excellent a team it is. It also likely will not have the same anxiety from being on the Penn State field and feeling the state final atmosphere since it has been through it all before.

It still comes down to what happens on the field, but South having dealt with the other factors before certainly provides an asset.

“It really does help. I think last year we were really excited to be there and weren’t really thinking about the game ahead,” pitcher Alizabeth Schuler said. “This year we know what to expect and we know we have to come out first inning focused and try to score some runs and do all the great things we know how to do.”

They certainly know they will be backed by great fans.

South turned Central Columbia into what felt like a home game in last Monday’s semifinals. Ditto in the quarterfinals in Philipsburg-Osceola. Obviously, those fans cannot directly impact the game, but they can help lift the team’s spirits throughout it.

“Seeing as many people come out as much as they do is an amazing feeling. Knowing we have this group rallying around us is a huge thing,” catcher Lily Reidy said. “We come from this small town of South Williamsport and there’s so much support behind us.”

It’s a reciprocal relationship. The players appreciate the fans, who appreciate all the good times this team has provided them. At this point, it’s as much a community celebration as it is a state final. However the game goes, those Mountie backers will be pumping up the volume, saluting their favorite players.

“Every game we have so many fans. It’s so nice to have them here,” first baseman Abby Lorson said. “I feel a lot of pride. I feel so much pride being on this team.”

The following is a deeper look at today’s game.

Class AA State

Championship

Neshannock (25-0) vs. South Williamsport (18-5) at Beard Field, Penn State, 11 a.m.

Neshannock road to Penn State: In District 7, beat Apollo Ridge, 14-2; Bentworth, 4-1 and Chartiers-Houston, 7-1; in States, beat Sharpsville, 10-0; Chestnut Ridge, 5-3 and Chartiers-Houston, 12-1

Neshannock notes: The defending champions have won 51 straight games since losing to Everett in the 2023 state semifinals, the seniors’ only loss in four years. Neshannock survived a scare against Chesntut Ridge in the state quarterfinals, scoring four straight runs after the game was tied, 1-1 in the fourth inning. Pitcher Addy Frye has been a two-way force and went 2 for 2 with a home run, while throwing a four-hitter with seven strikeouts in last year’s state final. She is 58-0 in her scholastic career, going 22-0 with a 0.80 ERA this season. The Providence-bound pitcher has allowed 62 hits in 114 innings, while striking out 203. She also is hitting .548 with seven home runs, 15 doubles and 40 RBIs. Frye is a career .548 hitter and is one hit from reaching her 100th. She also has 105 career RBIs. Neshannock is hitting a collective .458 and Jaidon Nogay, Miley Anderson and Gabby Quinn all will play at Kent State next spring. Nogay went 3 for 3 against South a year ago and is hitting a team-high .609 with 35 RBIs. She has 102 career hits, 96 runs and 96 RBIs. Anderson is batting .526 with 10 triples, 14 doubles, 40 runs and 37 RBIs. Quinn is at .418 with a team-best nine home runs and 30 RBIs. She went 2 for 3 with a home run in four RBIs in last year’s championship. Payton Newman adds four home runs and is batting .366. Frye allowed eight hits and struck out seven against Chestnut Ridge. Class A finalist Union gave Neshannock a battle early in the season, erasing a a two-run eighth inning deficit before losing, 6-4 in 10 innings.

South road to Penn State: In District 4, beat Wyalusing, 10-0 and Troy, 11-1; In States, beat Holy Redeemer, 10-0; West Shamokin, 4-2, and Williams Valley, 9-5

South notes: Like Neshannock, South features a decorated senior class. Those seven senior starters are playing in their 23rd playoff game, going 19-3 the past four seasons. They also have 83 career wins and four district championships. South is the first team in program history to make consecutive state championship appearances and the first area softball team to do so in the 2000s. The Mounties collected 10 hits against Williams Valley with production coming throughout the lineup. Alizabeth Schuler, Lily Reidy and Abby Lorson all had two hits with Reidy and Lorson hitting two-run, fifth inning home runs which put South up, 9-5 after Williams Valley had just tied the game. Schuler, shortstop Gianna Goodman, Reidy and Lorson all have more than 100 career hits, while Sage Lorson has 91 and Kendall Cardone 81. Goodman and Schuler both had RBI hits in the third inning against Neshannock last year, helping South tie the game after the Lancers had taken an early 2-0 lead. Left fielder Maddie Pinkerton went 1 for 1 with a walk. She and center fielder Mikaiya Hills have helped South reach the Final 4 in each of their three seasons as has junior second baseman Emma McLaughlin. McLaughlin made a phenomenal, game-changing catch against West Shamokin, saving two runs. Emily Holtzapple has delivered key hits all season and did so again Monday, working an eight-pitch at-bat after falling behind 0-2, lacing a lead-off single which ignited a five-run rally.

–by CHRIS MASSE

Neshannock Game-by-Game Results

Neshannock 4, Chartiers Valley 0

Neshannock 12, New Castle 1

Neshannock 6, Union 4, 10 innings

Neshannock 14, Laurel 4

Neshannock 15, Freedom 0

Neshannock 15, Freedom 0

Neshannock 15, Aliquippa 0

Neshannock 15, Aliquippa 0

Neshannock 6, Shenango 0

Neshannock 16, Riverside 0

Neshannock 18, New Brighton 0

Neshannock 6, Laurel 2

Neshannock 11, Shenango 1

Neshannock 17, Riverside 0

Neshannock 15, New Brighton 0

Neshannock 9, Armstrong 3

Neshannock 11, Mohawk 0

Neshannock 8, Elizabeth Forward 5

Neshannock 15, Burgettstown 0

Neshannock 14, Apollo Ridge 2

Neshannock 4, Bentworth 1

Neshannock 7, Chartiers-Houston 1

Neshannock 10, Sharpsville 0

Neshannock 5, Chestnut Ridge 3

Neshannock 12, Chartiers-Houston 1

South Williamsport Game-by-Game Results

South 11, Westerville, Ohio 1

South 17, Roane County, VA 2

South 9, Riverside, Ohio 8

South 9, Grove City, Ohio 12, 9 innings

South 9, Eastlake, Ohio 4

South 14, Hazleton 2

South 3, Warrior Run 4, 8 innings

South 16, Upper Dauphin 0

South 8, Mifflinburg 1

South 7, Montoursville 1

South 11, Northeast Bradford 0

South 13, Towanda 4

South 11, Jersey Shore 5

South 0, Bald Eagle Area 1

South 11, Shikellamy 1

South 3, Abington Heights 11

South 0, Athens 3

South 7, Mifflinburg 1

South 10, Wyalusing 0

South 11, Troy 1

South 10, Holy Redeemer 0

South 4, West Shamokin 2

South 9, Williams Valley 5