Jun 26, 2015 4 min read

Trinity senior shortstop Olivia Gray noticed the trend.

After three strong seasons at the plate for the Hillers, opposing pitchers began to pitch around the Pitt recruit.

She did not mind. All it would take is one small mistake for her to make opposing pitchers pay and she did plenty of that during the Hillers’ run to the PIAA Class AAA championship game.

Gray batted an area-best .611 and led Trinity in doubles (15), home runs (7) and runs (44). Her ability at the plate was matched with her stellar play in the field, which was on display in the state championship game when she made a diving back-handed catch against Bethlehem Catholic.

The performance earned her praise from across the state, which was evident Friday when the Pennsylvania High School Softball Coaches Association released its postseason awards.

Gray was voted the Class AAA Player of the Year, and made first-team all-state for the third time in her high school career. She was joined on the first team by teammate Delaney Elling, a junior first baseman and Penn State recruit who batted .580 with 10 doubles and four home runs.

“It was a great experience and I got to spend it with my best friends,” Gray said of her senior season. “I played Little Twisters with about 80 percent of my team so to be able to go from that stage to our state championship was surreal. We didn’t expect to be there, so for us to get there was a great thing for us.”

Gray improved her batting average every year during her high school career and steadily improved in every facet. It did not matter that she faced some of the top pitching in the state this spring. The right-handed power-hitter drove the ball to the gaps and helped the Hillers score double-digit runs nine times.

Trinity head coach Shawn Gray, Olivia’s father, has coached his daughter since she began playing the sport more than 10 years ago, including the past two years with the Hillers. Watching her work toward achieving the state’s highest honor for a high school softball player was invaluable.

“She has taught me a lot about the game I didn’t know and I’ve also probably given her a couple tips she didn’t know,” Shawn Gray said. “I would have never guessed that me and my wife would be so blessed to have such a talented little girl. We couldn’t be more proud.”

Postseason success translated into accolades for several other local athletes. Jefferson-Morgan senior pitcher Madison Ludrosky and Chartiers-Houston senior center fielder Kassie Kesneck were named to the first team in Class A, and Canon-McMillan junior shortstop Linda Rush continued the program’s run of players selected first-team all-state in Class AAAA.

Ludrosky, a three-year starter, helped the Rockets capture their first WPIAL title. She finished the season with a 15-4 record, an area-best 170 strikeouts in 112.1 innings and a 0.69 earned run average. She also batted .400 with 17 RBI, and walked only three batters in the postseason, which ended in the PIAA quarterfinals.

“Madison was as good as any pitcher in the state this year, and I’m confident in saying that,” Jefferson-Morgan head coach Tony Barbetta said. “Everybody knows the core of any good team is a pitcher and a catcher, and I felt I had the best in Western Pennsylvania. Maddie was on a roll in the playoffs. She was the light and realized she could be great.”

Kesneck, a four-year starter, batted .425 with nine doubles, 22 runs and a team-high 33 RBI. She also did not commit an error and batted .500 during the Bucs’ run to the WPIAL championship.

She was joined on the all-state team by Chartiers-Houston freshman pitcher Kaitlyn Dittrich, who had a 19-4 record with a 1.00 ERA in 133 innings, 72 strikeouts and 16 walks.

Rush, a Drexel recruit, led the Big Macs to the WPIAL quarterfinals with a .577 average, 33 runs, 31 RBI, three doubles and an area-best 11 home runs. She only struck out three times in 66 plate appearances.

Other players who received recognition were Burgettstown junior pitcher Kate Tarr and Carmichaels senior pitcher Erica Burns. Both were named honorable mention in Class AA.

Tarr helped the Blue Devils capture a share of the Section 1-A title with a 16-4 record, 158 strikeouts and a 2.61 ERA. She also batted .327 with four home runs and 23 RBI.

Burns, a Point Park recruit, continued her tremendous high school career by helping the Mikes reach the WPIAL playoffs in their return to Class AA. She had 157 strikeouts in 119 innings. She only walked 25 batters and had a 1.41 ERA. Burns hit .492 with a home run in the WPIAL playoffs, 25 runs and 15 RBI.