ALLENTOWN – Eva Kane cleared the bases for Abington Heights.
Adrianna Condrad made sure they remained full for Upper Dublin.
With Kane and Condrad leading the way Monday afternoon, the Lady Comets advanced to a PIAA state softball championship game for the first time with a 7-0, semifinal shutout of the Flying Cardinals.
The game swung on the results of five bases-loaded situations.
Kane made the most of the only chance for Abington Heights, delivering an inside-the-park grand slam in the second inning.
Upper Dublin had four at-bats with the bases loaded, but never scored as Condrad battled her way through a three-hitter.
Abington Heights already had one run in when Kane came to the plate with two out in the top of the second.
Kane looped a flyball down the right-field line. She never stopped running when Maddie Small made a long run and valiant effort, but came up short as she stretched to try to make the final out, allowing the ball to bounce behind her up the line.
By the time Small retrieved the ball, three runs were definitely going to score, and Kane was going to be tough to stop. When the relay throw was offline, Kane scored uncontested.
“It was in my line of vision,” said Kane, who hit her second homer of the state tournament. “When I was running toward first, I saw it drop and roll past her, so I knew I wasn’t stopping.
“I was going to run as hard as I could until coach held me up, but he never held me up. He just let me go.”
The Flying Cardinals had no such opportunities to run around the bases with Condrad in the circle. The Syracuse University commit struck out 14, including three with the bases loaded, two of them to end innings.
“She’s at her best in those situations,” Abington Heights coach John Kelly said. “That’s when she really digs down and hits her spots.”
Abington Heights made it all the way to the state semifinals in 2007, 2016 and 2023, but this is the first shot at a championship game. The Lady Comets (24-1) will face District 7 champion Shaler (23-1) Thursday at 11 a.m. Shaler, which has won two state titles, reached its seventh state championship game by outlasting Thomas Jefferson 5-3 in 11 innings Monday night.
“We’ve had a lot of special players; a lot of really good players over the years,” Kelly said. “This team doesn’t care who gets the credit. They’re there for each other.
“Every game this year, someone has stepped up and done something big. It’s not one or two players carrying the team.”
Avary Brister has frequently been one of the offensive leaders. She had two hits, stole two bases and drove in the final run in the fourth inning. The second hit was the 100th of her career.
“I knew I was in the 90s,” Brister said. “I wasn’t sure exactly where, but I knew I was close.”
Isabella DeRiggi walked and scored the first Abington Heights run. She moved to second on a Brianna Bustos sacrifice, then went to third on a wild pitch. DeRiggi scored on an infield single by Evelyn Henkels.
Riley McColligan and Avery Venesky drew walks before and after the Henkels hit.
The Lady Comets scored twice in the fourth after Ella Long was hit by a pitch, and Venesky walked to get things started.
Kane had a sacrifice, and Condrad drove in a run on a groundout.
Condrad did the rest in the circle, once again starting and finishing strong. She retired the first six with five strikeouts, then the last seven with five strikeouts, four of which came in succession.
“It’s really important to be able to combine that,” Kelly said. “A lot of pitchers start off strong and then tail off as the game goes on.
“She actually gets stronger. The more she throws, the harder she throws. … She throws just as hard in the seventh as she does in the first.”
