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JOHNSTOWN -- Portage's softball team was looking to extend its remarkable late-season surge heading into Monday afternoon's District 6 Class 1A quarterfinal playoff game at Conemaugh Valley.
The seventh-seeded Mustangs had won five in a row and held a 1-0 lead over the second-seeded Blue Jays after four and a half innings of play, but Conemaugh Valley had too much offensive firepower down the stretch and ended Portage's playoff run with an 8-1 comeback victory.
"You couldn't have asked for a better first half of the game," said Portage coach Makena Baumgardner, whose squad closed out a 10-12 campaign. "But the last two innings got the best of us."
"Coming in her knowing we lost big to CV during the regular season, we had nothing to lose, so we figured we might as well have fun and make a game of it," Baumgardner added.
Mustang senior pitcher Paige Phillips kept the Blue Jays off-balance with four shutout innings to start, but ran into trouble in the bottom of the fifth.
After Phillips surrendered back-to-back one-out singles, freshman shortstop Maddie McCleester launched a three-run homer over the left field fence to put the Blue Jays in the lead, and Conemaugh Valley (18-3) followed that with five more runs in the sixth to effectively seal the outcome and advance to Thursday's semifinal matchup with third-seeded Claysburg-Kimmel.
"It takes a little while to get onto a pitcher of her (Phillips's) caliber," Conemaugh Valley coach Paula McCleester said. "She has a fastball, throws off-speed, and works the corners. We just needed to believe in ourselves. All it took was one person to get it started and then it turned into a flood."
Conemaugh Valley freshman hurler Maddy Beiter picked up the complete-game victory in the circle by giving up just one unearned run on four hits, while striking out 14 and walking two.
"Maddy Beiter was tough out there," Paula McCleester said. "It was hot, probably the hottest game we've had all year, we've been off for a while, but she pitched really well."
The Mustangs opened the scoring with a two-out rally in the top of the third. Tori Harrison and Castel reached on consecutive singles for Portage. Harrison then stole third and subsequently raced home on a throwing error during an attempt to get Castel advancing to second, allowing Portage to seize a one-run lead.
That margin held until McCleester's home run, and the Blue Jays opened the sixth inning with another round-tripper when freshman Megan Bilak launched a solo shot down the left-field line. Bilak finished 2-for-3. Beiter then drew a walk and later came home when Julia Stiffler reached on an error to make it 5-1.
Stiffler scored when Ava Schellhammer reached on a subsequent error, and following a two-out double by McCleester, who finished with three of the Blue Jays' 10 hits, sophomore center fielder Kylee Ferguson lined a two-run double to right that set the eventual final.
A playoff run didn't seem likely for the Mustangs after a dismal eight-game mid-season losing streak, and the club's turnaround earned praise from Baumgardner.
"I wish it would have ended better for us, but I can't complain about the way these girls have played this season. Their confidence has grown so much." she added.
PORTAGE (1): Trusik ss 400, Harrison cf 311, Castel 3b 202, Noll 1b 300, Koban c 301, Phillips p 300, Stancovich lf/2b 300, Kunko rf/lf 300, McCarty 2b 200, Johnson rf 000. Totals - 26-1-4.
CONEMAUGH VALLEY (8): McCleester ss 423, Ferguson cf 301, Ledwich c 400, Bilak 3b/1b 312, Beiter p 211, J. Stiffler rf 311, Winkleman 2b 300, Miller 3b 100, Schellhammer 221, M. Stiffer lf 311. Totals - 28-8-10.
SCORE BY INNINGS
Portage 001 000 0 -- 1 4 2
Con. Valley 000 035 X -- 8 10 2
E- Noll 2, Miller, Beiter. 2B- Ferguson, McCleester. 3B-none. HR-McCleester, Bilak. RBI- McCleester 3, Ferguson 2, Bilak, Schellhammer. WP-Beiter. LP-Phillips. SO-Beiter 14, Phillips 6. BB-Beiter 2, Phillips 1.
Records: Portage (10-12); Conemaugh Valley (18-3)