James Buchanan

Softball: Ship handles JB, wins MPC Colonial

A lot of opposing softball teams are glad Morgan Fetter is graduating, but maybe none more than the James Buchanan Lady Rockets.

Fetter, the Shippensburg senior backstop, continued her torrid hitting against the Lady Rockets this season as she jacked two 3-run homers to lead the Lady Hounds to a convincing 11-1 five-inning win over JB on Saturday.

The victory clinched the Mid Penn Colonial Division championship for the Lady Hounds, who are now 14-3.

“The girls were really up for this game,” Shippensburg coach Mike Peters said. “I was really pleased how well we hit up and down the lineup.”

Earlier this season, in a Shippensburg 4-0 victory at JB, Fetter also launched a 3-run homer.

“She (Fetter) didn’t miss a pitch today,” JB coach Troy Pittman said of Fetter, who was 3-for-3 with 6 RBI.

Peters was happy to see Fetter, who got her 100th career hit earlier this season, come through again.

“We had a game plan early to try some small ball and hoped to get some runners on ahead of Morgan,” Peters said. “That worked out and Morgan got some real nice hits.”

Fetter’s first homer, a line drive over the left field fence, came in the bottom of the first. Winning pitcher Emily Wenner, who singled and Sami Barmont, who reached on an error, scored ahead of Fetter.

“We lack experience and Shippensburg has more,” Pittman said. “We gave them a few runs, but they also took advantage of our mistakes.”

JB (13-5) got its only run in the top of the second when Carly Caron reached on an error and eventually scored on Kate Ebersole’s sacrifice fly.

Other than that Wenner shut the Lady Rockets down. She scattered 4 hits, stuck out 4 and threw 44 of her 65 pitches for strikes in her 5 innings of work.

“Emily pitched another real nice game,” Peters said. “She is very deceptive, places her pitches well and keeps the ball down.”

Barmont bumped the Lady Hounds lead to 6-1 in the bottom of the second with a 2-run single.

Fetter highlighted Shippensburg’s 5-run fourth inning with her second home run, this time a missile over the left field fence. Hayleigh Highlands pushed across the other 2 runs of the inning with a 2-run double.

The Lady Hounds will now play Chambersburg on Tuesday in the MPC tournament semifinals. The game is scheduled for 5 p.m. at Big Spring. JB doesn’t play again until May 24 in the District 3 Class AAAA quarterfinals where its likely opponent will be West Perry.