2022 WPIAL Class 4A softball championship preview: Beaver vs. Elizabeth Forward

By: Bill Hartlep
Wednesday, June 1, 2022 | 4:05 PM

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WPIAL Class 4A softball championship

1-Beaver (18-0) vs. 2-Elizabeth Forward (16-2)

Noon Friday at Cal (Pa.)

On the air: Trib HSSN (video)

Road to the finals

Beaver – Section 3 champion Beaver earned a first-round bye, then defeated No. 8 Freeport, 10-0, in the quarterfinals and beat No. 5 Montour, 6-1, in the semifinals.

Elizabeth Forward – The Section 2 champion Warriors were awarded a first-round bye, defeated No. 10 West Mifflin, 4-1, in the quarterfinals and beat No. 3 Burrell, 2-1, in the semifinals.

Secret to their success

Beaver – Senior Payton List, a Virginia Tech recruit and the 2021 Trib HSSN Player of the Year, has been dominant in the pitching circle this year. Last season, she finished 16-0 with an ERA of 0.64 and 233 strikeouts in 120 innings pitched. This season, she is 18-0 and has an ERA of 0.49 with 230 strikeouts in 114 innings. She also is batting .643 with 10 home runs and 27 RBIs. Freshman catcher Sami Springman, who was 2 for 3 in the semifinals, is batting .481 with 15 RBIs.

Elizabeth Forward – The Warriors’ bats have been hot, led by senior Grace Smith, who is hitting .509 with 27 RBIs, and sophomore Shelby Telegdy, who is batting .516 with six homers and 22 RBIs. She’s also been strong in the pitching circle at 5-1 with a 1.47 ERA and 108 strikeouts. Junior Lauren Vay is batting .446 with 19 RBIs. Senior Brooke Markland (.373) had a key RBI double in the semifinals.

Championship factoids

Beaver – The Bobcats captured WPIAL and PIAA championships last season, defeating Highlands, 2-1, at Cal (Pa.) and Tunkhannock, 5-4, at Penn State. It was Beaver’s second WPIAL championship (2014). List threw a one-hitter with 12 strikeouts. The undefeated Bobcats haven’t lost a game in more than two seasons, a streak of 39 straight wins.

Elizabeth Forward – EF fell to Highlands in the WPIAL semifinals last year but bounced back to defeat West Mifflin the third-place consolation game to reach the PIAA playoffs. There, the Warriors fell to Beaver in the state quarterfinals. Elizabeth Forward is seeking its second WPIAL title after winning the Class 4A crown in 2019.

Bill Hartlep is the TribLive sports editor. A Pittsburgh native and Point Park graduate, he joined the Trib in 2004, covering high school sports. He held various editing roles before assuming his current position in 2019. He can be reached at bhartlep@triblive.com.

Tags: Beaver, Elizabeth Forward