LOCK HAVEN — The DuBois Central Catholic softball team is no stranger when it comes to the state semifinals, as the Lady Cardinals hit the diamond Monday in the PIAA Final Four for the sixth time in the last eight postseasons.
However, there is one big difference this time around as the Lady Cardinals (21-2) find themselves on the East side of the bracket where they will battle District 2 champ Old Forge in the first-ever meeting between the two schools.
DuBois Central Catholic’s first five trips to the PIAA semifinals all came on the West side of the bracket, with DCC owning a record of 2-3 in those West Finals.
The Lady Cardinals battled West Greene, a WPIAL school, in their first four trips to semis. West Greene won the first two meetings in 2016 (5-2) and 2017 (9-5) before DCC finally got the best of the Lady Pioneers, 3-2, in 2019 to reach the first state championship game in program history.
The two schools met again in the 2021 semifinals, a matchup West Greene won 12-1 to reach yet another Class A state final. DuBois Central Catholic returned to PIAA championship game a year later (2022) when it knocked off Saegertown, 4-0, in the West Final.
Outside of the lost COVID season of 2020, the only time DCC hasn’t reached at least the state semifinals came in 2018 (lost in quarterfinals to Claysburg-Kimmel) and last year when it fell to Carmichaels, 7-0, in the opening round of states.
Ironically, Carmichaels — the third place team from the WPIAL this season — is still alive on the other side of the bracket and plays WPIAL champ Chartiers-Houston in the West Final. That contest is a rematch from the WPIAL semifinals, which Chartiers-Houston won 3-2.
Central Catholic has now reached states 10 times in school history and sport an overall record of 16-9 entering Monday’s contest.
Meanwhile, Old Forge also is no stranger to the PIAA layoffs as the Lady Blue Devils are in their 12th trip to states.
Old Forge is fresh off a thrilling 6-5 win against defending defending state champ Tri Valley Thursday — a victory that put the Lady Blue Devils into the state semifinals for the first time since 2009.
Local softball fans, especially those from Curwensville, might remember that 2009 Old Forge squad as the Lady Tide eventually bested the Lady Blue Devils, 1-0, in the state finals at Shippensburg University. Old Forge also reached the semis in 2008.
The current edition of the Lady Devils sports a 20-5 record entering Monday’s matchup against DCC. Old Forge is led senior pitcher Karen Sickle, who is 20-5 on the season with 255 strikeouts, 40 walks and a 1.59 ERA in 141 innings of work. Sickle is 47-17 in her career with 698 Ks and a 2.50 ERA in 395 innings.
Offensively, Old Forge doesn’t have gaudy numbers on paper as the Lady Devils have just a .318 team batting average. Conversely, DCC’s team average is nearly 100 points higher at .403.
The senior duo Talia Piragas and Meghan Marianelli lead that attack.
Piragas leads the team in average (.469), hits (38), runs (35), doubles (10) and is second in home runs (5) and RBIs (23). Meanwhile, Marianelli leads the way in homers (6), RBIs (32) and is tied for the lead with 10 doubles. She is second to Piragas in average (.432), hits (32) and runs (24).
Sophom*ore Ava Arnold also is a threat at the plate and is hitting .354 (23 hits) with 20 RBIs, four doubles and two homers. Fellow sophom*ores Ariana Davitt (21) and Kate O’Hearn (20) are the only other Lady Devils with more 20 or more hits. O’Kearn also had four doubles and 17 RBIs, while Davitt has five doubles and 10 RBIs.
On the other side, DCC has six players with 20 or more hits and six players who sport a batting average over .400.
Senior Kayley Risser leads the Lady Cardinals in hits (30), average (.484), RBIs (30) and homers (3) and is second in runs (34).
Fellow seniors Melia Mitskavich and Lauren Davidson aren’t far behind Risser and are tied with a .452 average and have 28 hits a piece. Mitskavich leads the team in doubles (11) and runs (35) and is tied for first in homers (3) and is second with 27 RBIs. Davidson has 28 hits and 22 RBIs to go along with eight doubles and 27 runs.
Senior Jessy Frank (.431, 28 hits, 5 doubles, 5 triples, 15 RBIs, 28 runs), sophmore Rylee Kulbatsky (.423, 22 hits, 4 doubles, 17 RBIs, 6 runs) and junior Marina Hanes (.407, 11 hits, 4 RBIs. 9 runs) also are hitting over .400 on the season. Hanes has played just nine games since returning from a knee injury.
Kulbatsky has been the beneficiary of all that offense and put dominant pitching numbers herself in helping DCC return to the state semifinals. She will be playing in the semifinals for the first time herself, but was a bat girl for some of the previous DCC squads to reach the Final Four.
Kulbatsky is 17-2 on the season with a 0.67 ERA in 105 innings. She has racked up 215 strikeouts and walked just 18 on the season.
Old Forge and DuBois Central Catholic will face off for a berth in the state finals on Monday at Lock Haven University’s Lawrence Field at 2 p.m.
