Monessen ready to battle West Greene in WPIAL Class A softball final

By: HSSN Staff
Wednesday, May 30, 2018 | 10:06 PM

Monessen softball coach Bo Teets considers West Greene one of the best teams he has seen as a coach in Class A.

So he knows his second-seeded Greyhounds will be presented with a tough challenge when they face the No. 1 Pioneers in the WPIAL championship game at noon Thursday at Seton Hill.

But the 'Hounds will be up for it.

They know they're capable of defeating the Pioneers (18-4) because they've done it before.

Despite falling 8-1 in their first meeting against their Section 2 foes April 6, the Greyhounds (15-3) earned a 2-1 victory over West Greene on April 26.

The win helped Monessen earn a share of the section crown for the first time in program history and helped gain some extra confidence heading into the title game.

“We shouldn't go in there intimidated,” Teets said. “We have played this team close, and we beat them this year, so we definitely should have some confidence going into it.

“On the other hand, there have been games when they have kind of put it on us, too, so I think we are really focused on (Thursday) and worried about winning the next pitch and the next play. We are trying to be 1-0 at the end of (Thursday); that has kind of been our thing for the last couple of years.”

Making the routine plays, getting outs when they can and limiting mistakes will be crucial for the Greyhounds to have any shred of success against the Pioneers.

“Giving a team like this extra opportunities is pretty much a recipe for disaster,” Teets said. “We have to be able to make the plays when we are given the opportunity to do that.”

West Greene features sophomore pitcher Jade Renner, who went 11-4 with 78 strikeouts in the regular season.

She has allowed two runs in two playoff games.

“We were fortunate last time to beat them 2-1, but I don't know if two runs will be enough to beat them again,” Teets said. “I think we are going to have to definitely get more than two. With the way they hit and the way they battle, we are really going to have to work hard to score runs when we have the opportunities.”

Robert Morris recruit Dana Vatakis will oppose Renner.

Vatakis, who has 228 strikeouts this season, struck out 20 in a no-hitter against Riverview in the quarterfinals before punching out 11 in a semifinal win over Leechburg.

“I expect her to come out and do her best in the circle and try to put the team on her back as much as she can,” Teets said. “I think it is definitely going to take the full team effort though. All 14 girls on the varsity team are going to have to contribute for us to come out on the right side.”

Vatakis is one of a handful of seniors getting the chance to face off against West Greene again for the title.

Monessen fell 10-0 to the Pioneers in last year's final.

“All of the seniors have really been a dedicated group of girls and they work really hard,” Teets said. “We really try to push them as hard as we can, and we coach them hard. For these girls to get another shot at it against a team like them, I think we are excited and ready to go.”

Jose Negron is a Mon Valley Independent staff writer.

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