High School Softball

ANNVILLE — With a winner-take-all game for the Lancaster-Lebanon League Section Four softball title ahead of them as they traveled from Fredericksburg to Annville on Monday afternoon, what was the mood on the Northern Lebanon bus?

Senior Day/Senior Night, a time of recognition for student and parent alike, is always filled with emotion. Thursday in New Holland was such a time for the Garden Spot softball team and the emotions flowed freely. Doubly so.

For the first five innings Friday, Manheim Central pitcher Riley Hostetter looked like Jennie Finch. Over the last two, more like Sydd Finch, but it was still enough.

It’s the time of the season when goals are in sight, or reset. A time when teams reach back for that extra gear to get over the top.

Beating Warwick with three outs in an inning is a tall enough task. Giving them an extra out in an inning is a recipe for disaster.

The last two weeks in Lancaster-Lebanon League softball have been a wild time. A time that has seen the league playoff picture come into focus, if only ever so slightly, while the District Three playoff structure remains ever changing.

The world can change in a fortnight. The world of Lancaster-Lebanon League Section Two softball certainly changed in the space of 14 days.

A softball showdown for the Lancaster-Lebanon League Section One softball lead between Warwick and Hempfield in Landisville on Monday afternoon lived up to the hype and then some.