DAVE KENNEDY/Sun-Gazette Montgomery’s softball team poses after beating Bucktail to win the District 4 championship last week. The Red Raiders’ Addison Greger (No. 21) and Chloe Gordner (No. 26) have been vital additions to Montgomery.

A year ago, Addison Greger played at Nazareth as the Blue Raiders reached the Class 6A state championship. Two years ago, Chloe Gordner played softball just outside Houston.

Now they are both Red Raiders. And their additions are vital reasons Montgomery is Queen of the District 4 Class A softball world.

Greger and Gordner have made big impacts since their arrivals, helping Montgomery capture the District 4 Class A championship. The Raiders (16-6) did so last Thursday at Elm Park, as Greger threw out another runner from behind the plate and Gordner went 2 for 4 with three RBIs in an 8-2 title win against Bucktail.

“I really like Montgomery a lot,” Greger said. “I’ve built a much better connection with everyone. Everyone makes me feel like a big part of the team.”

“This is really awesome, especially after moving here last year from Texas,” Gordner said. “It was a new team, and getting used to all the girls was really fun.”

Greger and Gordner have helped Montgomery enjoy themselves throughout the season, providing consistent pop to the middle of the lineup. Greger, a junior, is hitting .435 with 22 RBIs.

Still, as impressive as her offense is, Greger’s defense might be even better. She has a hose for an arm, a sharp mind and can shut down the opposition’s running game. Greger proved it at crucial times in both the district semifinals and championship.

Against Cowanesque Valley in the semifinals last Tuesday, Greger picked a runner off second base, squashing a potential first inning rally before hitting two doubles in a 14-0 win. When Bucktail closed within 3-1 in the fourth inning Thursday on a Rebekah Conway RBI bunt, Greger alertly saw the runner from first trying to take an extra base and made a perfect throw to Ramona Kroll for another rally-stopping out.

“She’s a great catcher,” pitcher Ava Hartman said. “We have a good bond. Even when I miss my spots and she gets on me, it’s fun.”

Greger’s impact can be seen in Hartman’s postseason brilliance. The senior pitcher dazzled against both CV and Bucktail, holding dangerous offenses to two runs, walking none against Bucktail and throwing just 74 pitches in the final.

Maybe it was fitting then, that Greger was the first one to greet Hartman as she smiled and left the mound as happy teammates rushed toward her after producing a championship-clinching strikeout.

“Addi always lifts me up,” Hartman said. “It definitely makes me calmer on the mound when I know she can pick off people and my defense can pick me up.”

Greger is outstanding at picking all her teammates up. Maybe even more important than the offensive production and defensive prowess Greger provides is the leadership she shows on a daily basis.

“One of the big things she brought with her was leadership,” Montgomery coach Chris Glenn said. “Her and (center fielder) Zoe (Furman) motivate the team. They are a big help when it comes to getting the team back up.”

That includes when things do not go their way. Greger has mirrored Furman in displaying a next pitch, next at-bat, next play mentality. That is a vital intangible in a game like softball where even the best hitters often fail to deliver a hit in the majority of their at-bats.

It’s shaking off moments like those and moving forward which Greger has epitomized. Having that quality spread throughout the dugout has brought out the entire team’s best at the perfect time.

“Addi never has a down attitude. If she strikes out, she goes right back out there and competes. She’s like the perfect player that way,” Glenn said. “I love that attitude because it’s hard to find. If you have nine like that, that’s a team that’s hard to beat.”

Having Gordner certainly has helped make Montgomery tougher to beat, too.

The senior designated hitter has flourished since coming to Montgomery for her junior year. Building off a strong debut season a year ago, Gordner has provided protection for hitters like Greger and first baseman Madisyn Miller, hitting .444 with 16 RBIs. Her clutch hitting against Bucktail was especially apparent with her two-run single capping a three-run rally and giving Montgomery a 6-1 fifth inning lead.

Gordner again delivered in the seventh inning, belting an RBI single which made it, 8-2. Both hits came after Bucktail had scored the previous inning, blunting the Bucks’ momentum and giving Montgomery another jolt.

“She always keeps me on my toes for sure. She likes to make me run,” Miller said. “Her line drive really helped us. That really got the energy going and was really big for us.”

“Those were big hits Chloe had,” Glenn said. “That kept the pressure on and kept adding to it and that was big.”

Gordner has been delivering timely hits since last year, helping Montgomery win 30 games. She has hit safely in six straight contests and proved especially effective in a late regular season stretch against 3A North Penn-Liberty (14-5) and district finalist Warrior Run. In those games, Gordner went 3 for 6 with an RBI and a run.

That success carried into the district final and a player who did not arrive until last year now is a big part of Montgomery history, helping the Raiders win their fourth district championship.

“We all just do our job,” Gordner said. “We all pick each other up and we work together so well.”

That Greger and Gordner have assimilated so well says a lot. Both came from large schools and Gordner’s Texas High School featured 4,000 students, including 1,000 her final year there. In contrast, Montgomery enrolls approximately 400 students grades 7-12.

Big or small, though, it does not matter. The bottom line is Greger and Gordner have found a home. Both they and their teammates sure are grateful.

“All the girls are nice, so it was really easy to mesh with everyone because they were really welcoming,” Gordner said. “They really hype you up. Even when they’re down, they help you.”

Talk about a reciprocal relationship.