West Greene rules: All-Area Softball Team
Jim Downey | Herald-Standard
Jim Downey | Herald-Standard
West Greene’s Kiley Meek winds up before delivering a pitch during the 2021 WPIAL Class A Softball Championship against Union at Cal U’s Lilley Field. Meek is the Herald-Standard All-Area Softball Team Small School Player of the Year.
West Greene’s Katie Lampe beats the throw to second base during the sixth inning of the PIAA Class A softball championship game against Tri-Valley on June 18. Lampe is a member of the Herald-Standard All-Area Softball Team Top 25. (Photo by Mark Marietta)
West Greene’s Kiley Meek and Mount Pleasant’s Mary Smithnosky were menacing double threats during the 2021 softball season.
Both used their arm and bat in leading their teams to WPIAL championships and into the PIAA finals.
The pair headline the Herald-Standard All-Area Softball Team.
Smithnosky is the Big School (Class 3A-5A) Player of the Year while Meek is the Small School (Class 1A-2A) Player of the Year.
Meek had a 21-3 record and a 2.00 ERA with 137 strikeouts and 41 walks. She pitched five shutouts with two abbreviated no-hitters and opponents hit just .197 off her.
At the plate, Meek batted .358 with eight doubles, a triple, a team-high seven home runs and 39 RBIs. She had a slugging percentage of .741 and was clutch in the playoffs with a pair of game-winning home runs.
The Lady Pioneers claimed their fifth straight WPIAL title and reached the state final for the fourth time. Meek pitched well in the final and took a shutout into the seventh inning before Tri-Valley pulled out a 2-1 win.
Small School Player of the Year runner-ups were Frazier’s Rylee Evans and Jensyn Hartman and West Greene’s Jersey Wise, London Whipkey and Katie Lampe.
Smithnosky also came up big under pressure, tossing six straight shutouts to start the postseason. She finally was touched up for three runs in the PIAA Class 3A championship game but still threw a four-hitter as the Lady Vikings won, 5-3, over Mid Valley to claim their second state crown.
Smithnosky, an Eastern Michigan recruit, was 16-1 with a 2.29 ERA and 117 strikeouts. She helped her own cause with a .449 batting average with four home runs, 13 doubles and 29 RBIs.
Big School Player of the Year runner-ups were Anna Resnik and Kailey Larcinese of Elizabeth Forward, Amarah McCutcheon of Southmoreland and Haylie Brunson, Courtney Poulich and Katie Hutter of Mount Pleasant.
McCutcheon, a shortstop who was one of the WPIAL’s most dangerous hitters, is the Freshman of the Year.
Mount Pleasant’s Chris Brunson is the Big School Coach of the Year and West Greene’s Bill Simms is the Small School Coach of the Year for guiding their teams to lofty heights.
Coach of the Year runner-ups were Elizabeth Forward’s Harry Rutherford and Frazier’s Don Hartman, who led their respective teams to section titles and the WPIAL semifinals, and Waynesburg Central’s Jim Armstrong who guided the Lady Raiders to a second-place finish behind Mount Pleasant while handing the Lady Vikings their lone loss in Section 3.
Other local teams who earned berths into the postseason were Connellsville, Yough, Belle Vernon, Southmoreland, Carmichaels, Charleroi, Bentworth, California, Mapletown and Jefferson-Morgan.
The complete Herald-Standard All-Area Softball Team follows:
Big School Player of the Year: Mary Smithnosky, Mount Pleasant
Small School Player of the Year: Kiley Meek, West Greene
Big School Coach of the Year: Chris Brunson, Mount Pleasant
Small School Coach of the Year: Bill Simms, West Greene
Freshman of the Year: Amarah McCutcheon
Top 25
Albert Gallatin: Rylee Hlatky
Belle Vernon: Maren Metikosh
California: Mylaina Pendo
Carmichaels: Sophia Zalar, Emma Holaren
Connellsville: Abby King, Jena Hixson
Elizabeth Forward: Anna Resnik, Kailey Larcinese
Frazier: Jensyn Hartman, Rylee Evans, Nicole Palmer
Mount Pleasant: Mary Smithnosky, Courtney Poulich, Haylie Brunson, Katie Hutter
Southmoreland: Amarah McCutcheon, Jess Matheny
Waynesburg Central: Erin Fitch
West Greene: Kiley Meek, London Whipkey, Jersey Wise, Katie Lampe
Yough: Kaylyn Odelli, Savannah Manns
Second Team
Albert Gallatin: Shayla Reynolds
Belle Vernon: Sophie Godzak, Olivia Kolowitz, Lexi Daniels
Bentworth: Jessica Rothka
Beth-Center: Jennifer Zelenick
Brownsville: Kami Franks, Kendra Franks
California: Kera Urick
Carmichaels: Mia Ranieri
Charleroi: Riley Jones, Kylie Quigley, McKenna DeUnger
Connellsville: Maddie Kinneer, Kirra Davis
Elizabeth Forward: Shelby Telegdy
Frazier: Maria Felsher, Delaney Warnick, Victoria Washinski
Jefferson-Morgan: Jasmine Demaske
Laurel Highlands: Payton Vitikacs, Julie Cooper
Mapletown: Macee Cree, Taylor Dusenberry
Monessen: Hannah Yorty
Mount Pleasant: Lexis Shawley
Ringgold: Peyton Laflash
Southmoreland: Emily Eutsey
Uniontown: Sequoia Dunlap, Jordan Hoover
Waynesburg Central: Hannah Wood, Meghan Braun
West Greene: Olivia Kiger
Yough: Emma Augustine
Honorable Mention
Albert Gallatin: Morgan Hershberger, Olivia Goodwin, Ashley Metts
Belle Vernon: Abby Fabin, Ashley Joll
Brownsville: Aubri Jogsett, Claire Zelner
California: Jordyn Cruse, Makayla Boda
Carmichaels: Emma Hyatt, Kendall Ellsworth, Madison Ellsworth, Carlee Roberts
Connellsville: Caitlin Jansen, Ava McLean, Iris Burd
Frazier: Abigail Scott, Skyler Hone
Jefferson-Morgan: Payton Farabee, Kayla Larkin, Madison Wright
Laurel Highlands: Sidney Grimm, Payton Knupsky, Sydney Laclair
Mapletown: Madi Blaker, Devan Clark
Mount Pleasant: Hannah Gnibus, Sophia Smithnosky
Ringgold: Dani Vicchio, Olivia Vicchio, Leah Paquay
Uniontown: Summer Hawk, Morgan Metts, Ty Thanh
West Greene: Lexi Six, BreAnn Jackson