Deer Lakes softball streaks past Derry to cap off big week

By: Michael Love
Friday, April 23, 2021 | 9:31 PM

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Some early two-out lightning put the Deer Lakes softball team on the right track to an 8-2 Section 1-3A victory over Derry on Friday.

All four of the Lancers’ runs in the first inning came with two outs, as did their second-inning run, as they took a 5-0 lead.

“We knew, against this team, we had to come out hitting the ball,” said Deer Lakes coach Rick Cerra, whose team improved to 6-1 overall and 3-1 in section play. “We wanted to get the lead and build on it through the rest of the game, and, fortunately, we were able to do that.”

The win capped a 3-0 week for Deer Lakes, which came back after a six-day covid pause to score a come-from-behind 7-6 win over North Catholic on Tuesday and a dominant 16-1 triumph over Shady Side Academy on Thursday before Friday’s key section contest against Derry.

Before its break, Deer Lakes had suffered a 6-3 section-opening loss to Valley.

“This was definitely a key week for us to get back into a groove,” said Lancers pitcher Jenna Bisegna, who scattered five hits and surrendered one walk while striking out seven in the complete-game victory.

“These wins will go a long way in helping meet our goal of possibly winning the section and getting in good position for the playoffs. There’s still a long way to go in the section, but we’re confident.”

The loss dropped Derry to 3-2 in section play and 3-4 overall. The Trojans and Lancers will meet again May 3 at Deer Lakes.

“We’re still alive in this, but the girls have to get through these next couple weeks, and that’s playing clean ball and stringing wins together,” Derry coach John DePalma said. “It comes down to starting early in games and executing the way I know we can.”

Deer Lakes finished the game with 12 hits as left fielder Keeghan Cook and catcher Tia Germanich led the way with three apiece.

Batters three through six in the Deer Lakes lineup — including shortstop Shayne Cerra and third baseman Hannah Mass — went a combined 10 for 16 and tallied all seven of the Lancers’ RBIs.

Bisegna singled to lead off the game and came around to score on a single from Mass.

Cook followed Mass with a single to put two runners on for Germanich, who belted an offering from Derry starter Maddie Berger over the center-field fence.

Germanich added an RBI single in the top of the seventh but had to leave the game in the bottom half of the inning after suffering an ankle injury during a collision at the plate.

Rick Cerra said he hopes the injury is something Germanich will be able to recover from soon and get back in the lineup.

Cook, a junior, collected her first varsity home run, a one-out solo shot to center in the fifth.

Both of Derry’s runs came home on double steals. Alanna Meloy doubled with one out in the second and scored, and Berger did the same with a double in the bottom of the seventh.

The first three Derry batters reached safely in the home half of the seventh, but Bisegna worked together with her defense to get out of the jam with a fielder’s choice out at the plate on the aforementioned collision along with flyouts to center and right.

“We saw (Bisegna) before. A lot of our girls had seen her in travel ball,” DePalma said. “She stayed outside. We had a plan with hitting outside, and we just didn’t follow it. We had a few hits, but all in all, we didn’t really execute until right at the end.”

Michael Love is a TribLive reporter covering sports in the Alle-Kiski Valley and the eastern suburbs of Pittsburgh. A Clearfield native and a graduate of Westminster (Pa.), he joined the Trib in 2002 after spending five years at the Clearfield Progress. He can be reached at mlove@triblive.com.

Tags: Deer Lakes, Derry Area