Blue Mountain’s Freiwald shuts down EF in state final, 4-0
UNIVERSITY PARK – Elizabeth Forward had no problem putting the ball in play against Blue Mountain pitcher Maria Freiwald on Friday.
Getting any production, well, that was an entirely different matter.
Freiwald tossed a five-hit shutout, despite only two strikeouts, and Madison Heim had two hits and two RBIs as the Lady Eagles blanked EF, 4-0, in the PIAA Class AAAA championship game at Penn State University’s Beard Field.
It was the second straight state title for Blue Mountain (27-1).
Freiwald induced the Lady Warriors into five fly outs and seven infield pop outs while walking none.
“We just hit too many fly balls. We didn’t hit like we were capable of doing,” EF coach Harry Rutherford said. “That’s a good pitcher. I can’t take anything away from her. She did a good job popping us up. We didn’t really put much (good) contact on the ball. I think there was only one really solid hit that we had.”
Elizabeth Forward, which entered the state tournament having won its second WPIAL championship, saw its season end at 23-2.
“It’s a young team. We’re only starting two seniors,” Rutherford pointed out. “The expectations will be we’re back here next year.”
It was the Lady Warriors’ second appearance in a PIAA final. They lost to West Perry, 3-2, in 2019.
Elizabeth Forward pitcher Shelby Telegdy had better strikeout numbers than Freiwald with nine, but allowed three earned runs on eight hits with one walk in taking the loss.
Blue Mountain took a 1-0 lead in the first inning when the speedy Addyson Fishburn beat out the first of her two infield hits, stole second and scored on an infield error.
From there the game turned into a pitchers duel until the fifth inning.
Freiwald retired the first 10 EF batters until Telegdy singled to center field with one out in the fourth inning. Carlee Soukup followed with the first of her two hits to give the Lady Warriors two runners on with one out, but Freiwald got a fly out and then came the first of two controversial calls that went against EF.
Berlyn Holibaugh hit a foul pop that was dropped by first baseman Olivia Labe but Holibaugh was called out for interference on the play even though Labe didn’t seemed to affected at all by her running by.
“He (home plate umpire) first called it interference in letting the catcher catch the ball,” Rutherford said. “I said she wasn’t even in the play. Then he said, oh no, I mean the first baseman. You don’t make that mistake. Then he said she wasn’t in the running lane.”
The call ended Elizabeth Forward’s best chance to get back in the game.
The Lady Warriors didn’t have to wait long to see another key call go against them.
Hailey Place led off the bottom of the inning for the Lady Eagles with a drive into left-center field. EF center fielder Hannah Evans made a diving attempt and the ball landed in her glove and popped out but she appeared to grab it and secure it before it hit the ground. The second base umpire saw it otherwise, ruled no catch and Place had a double.
Rutherford again protested to no avail.
“You get a controversial call out in the outfield, we thought we caught it,” Rutherford said. “They didn’t. I think that started them.”
The call wound up being huge when Heim hit a two-out RBI single to give Blue Mountain a 2-0 lead.
The Lady Eagles all but put the game away with an RBI double by Anna Borden and a run-scoring single by Heim in the top of the seventh.
“Shelby was getting a little bit tired at the end,” Rutherford said. “You could see that. She still had a pretty good performance.”
Elizabeth Forward put traffic on the base paths in each of the final four innings but was held off the scoreboard each time.
The Lady Warriors got a one-out single from Alivia Grimm in the fifth, a two-out single by Soukup in the sixth and a lead-off single by Holibaugh in the seventh.
Fittingly, the final two outs came on a fly out and pop out.
“I think she just was just spinning the ball and making us hit under it,” Telegdy said.
“We’ve been normally hitting the center of the ball,” Rutherford said. “That’s probably the hardest pitcher we’ve seen all year and she had some movement on it. She got us swinging at pitches that were up in the zone, so you’re going to hit the bottom half of the ball.”
Rutherford commended his team’s effort.
“The girls didn’t give up,” he said. “They fought all the way to the end.”
It was the final game in Telegdy’s storied career.
“It’s been great,” Telegdy said. “I’ve loved all my years here. I’m just proud of us for getting to this point. Lot’s to be proud of.”
“She’s been an inspiration for all these younger kids,” Rutherford said of Telegdy. “All the kids we have in camps that come in just idolize her. I can’t say enough about what she’s done for the program.”
Rutherford reaffirmed his belief that the Lady Warriors could be playing on the same field again next year.
“That’s basically how I feel,” Rutherford said. “They’re good enough. Yeah, we have to replace Shelby, but there’s enough hitters in the lineup and we’ve got a pitcher in every grade. We’re not hurting in pitching.”