May 31, 2016 By Eleanor Bailey 3 min read

Few people anticipated Chartiers-Houston (14-7) being in the 2016 WPIAL Class A softball championship game especially after graduating six senior starters from last year’s district runner-up club. Yet, that is where the Buccaneers will find themselves when they battle West Greene (22-1) at 4 p.m. June 2 at Lily Field on the California University of Pennsylvania campus.

“We are very excited to be back in the finals,” said C-H head coach Tricia Alderson. “This group has exceeded everyone else’s expectations bur our own. They have proven that hard work, sticking to a plan and trusting in the coaches and in each other can lead to great things.”

And, great things will be necessary if the Bucs are to topple the Pioneers, who were the undefeated Section 1 champions. In finishing runner-up in the division, C-H lost twice to West Greene.

“It’s going to be a challenge to play West Greene for the third time,” Alderson said, “but we are going to show up. Anything can happen and we’ve had time to prepare.

“West Greene has a very powerful offense and scores a lot of runs per game. We are going to need a great pitching and defensive performance to keep us in the ball game.

“Pitching, defense and clutch hitting when runners get on base will be keys to victory,” Alderson added of the championship contest.

The Bucs received all three in reaching the WPIAL final. They defeated Cardinal Wuerl North Catholic, 3-1, in the semifinals played at Baldwin.

In the win, Kaitlyn Dittrich tossed a three-hitter. She walked none and struck out three.

The Buccanneers scored a run in the second inning. After Dittrich led off with a double, Macie Shober entered the game as a pinch runner. She swiped third and scored on the throwing error.

In the bottom of the third, C-H tacked on two more runs. Kayla Elliot reached base on an error and moved to second on a bunt by Brittany Blumen. On a delayed steal, Elliot scored. Later, Kayla Alderson drilled an RBI single to cushion the Bucs’ lead.

Dittrich is the Bucs’ ace. She is 14-6 overall this spring. She boasts a 2.63 ERA. While she bats .393, Macie Kesneck and Alderson are C-H’s offensive standouts. Kesneck owns a .452 batting average with 30 runs scored and 23 RBI. Alderson owns a .403 batting average with 28 RBI and two home runs.

Meanwhile, Madison Renner spearheads the Pioneers. She boasted a 1.83 ERA before picking up her 14th win of the season against Union in the other semifinal. Renner is also the team’s top hitter with a batting average well over .550 and more than 50 RBIs.

Renner’s teammate and cousin, Bailey Bennington is 7-0 on the mound with a 0.65 ERA. Bennington is also batting closer to .580 with six homers and more than 30 RBI.

“West Greene has a very powerful offense and scores a lot of runs per game,” Alderson said. “We are going to need a great pitching and defensive performance to keep us in the game.”

Though the Bucs lack depth-they have only 11 players on the roster and none of them seniors-they benefit from a challenging schedule. “We played a tough non-section schedule and that has helped tremendously with the playoff games even though our record is not exactly the best overall.”