Observer-Reporter Athlete of the Week
Name: Bailey Bennington
School: West Greene
Year: Junior
Sport: Softball
Bennington’s week: The hard-throwing, right-handed pitcher threw back-to-back no-hitters Monday and Wednesday in victories over Fort Cherry and Mapletown. Though the Pioneers lost, 7-1, to section rival Chartiers-Houston Thursday, Bennington became the program’s career strikeout leader with 401, surpassing Paige Moninger’s mark in 2012.
She finished the week with 27 strikeouts, while going 9-for-12 with four doubles, a triple and five RBI.
“They were normal games to me. Getting a no-hitter is good on my part, but that means when the ball was hit, my teammates executed when they had to and everything was perfectly fine,” Bennington said. “Individual stats to me don’t really mean much.”
Back at it: Bennington’s three-inning no-hitter against Fort Cherry and seven-inning no-hitter against Mapletown Wednesday showed why she is one of the most feared pitchers in WPIAL Class A.
Mixing a fastball with a riser and a changeup, Bennington struck out a combined 20 batters in the two wins. It’s a continuation of her freshman and sophomore years. While West Greene did not reach the WPIAL playoffs either season, Bennington ended both regular seasons as the WPIAL’s leader in strikeouts.
Last season, Bennington recorded seven double-digit strikeout games, including a 22-strikeout performance against Monessen. She finished second among local pitchers with 174 strikeouts and batted .507 with three home runs and 20 RBI.
“We know at the beginning of the day that we’re going to get most people out with her best stuff, which is her power stuff,” West Greene head coach Billy Simms said. “We just have to locate fastballs up, down, in, out and when she’s cracking the club, she’s pretty special.”
It’s more of the same this season. Bennington has a 45-to-8 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 27 2/3 innings with a 1.52 ERA and is holding opponents to a .152 batting average.
Her dominance and hard work were rewarded when she struck out a batter to end the fifth inning against the Bucs Thursday, breaking the program record.
“It was bitter sweet. It was more sweet because I finally beat it, but it stunk because we were down and we were losing, so we couldn’t get excited about it,” Bennington said. “After the game, it was nice. It was exciting to see how your team will come together when someone achieves something they’ve strived for.”
Banner year: The Pioneers (2-1, 5-2) sit in second place in Section 1-A with a roster featuring just two seniors and four freshmen who have received more than 10 at-bats. Bennington’s prowess at the plate is aided by her cousin, Madison Renner, hitting behind her in the order.
Renner also threw a no-hitter Tuesday against Hundred, which included 18 strikeouts, and is leading the team with 18 RBI, two home runs and 26 total bases.
The future is bright in Rogersville. Offseason work began for the Pioneers in November with workouts three days a week. The group had one goal in mind: reaching the WPIAL playoffs for the first time since 2012. With Bennington, Renner and three other players batting over .300, West Greene is not slowing down anytime soon.
“The younger group of girls have been magnificent,” Bennington said. “It’s so exciting to have such a talented group now and coming up next year. It brings a lot of excitement for West Greene and hopefully we can finally bring back our name.”
Compiled by Lance Lysowski