Pioneers have embraced change, continued winning

McMURRAY – Hesitant.
It’s not a word you associate with the West Greene High School softball team, which is always pushing for another base or for another run.
But when coach Bill Simms had to fill a void left by the graduation of last year’s shortstop Madison Renner, he was hesitant to move all-state second baseman Kaitlyn Rizor.
Change is sometimes good.
It is, after all, what Simms and the Pioneers have done before. Whether it was turning the little engine that could into a fast-moving locomotive that teams like Union have been trying to slow down for the last four years, or revamping a team that lost important starters from past championship-winning squad and still remain at the top, the Pioners have been able to adapt.
As pitcher Jade Renner fought her way though the talcum powder, an early stunt from the Union student section, and Kaitlyn Rizor quieted the dog barks from inside the Scotties’ dugout with one smooth play after another, they showed again why West Greene is the standard for Class A softball.
The Pioneers won their fourth consecutive WPIAL title with an 11-0 Mercy-Rule victory over Union that lasted only six innings Wednesday afternoon at Peterswood Park.
“When we were freshman, we set the goal to win four (WPIAL championships),” Rizor said with a smile. “We have all wanted the same thing. We did it.”
The Pioneers just didn’t win. They sent a message to everybody that crowded around the field and the large contingent that preferred the view from atop the hill beyond the outfield fence.
West Greene, no matter how many tweaks, changes or barks, is still the top dog.
“We lost the big three from last year,” Simms said of shortstop Madison Renner, first baseman Lexi Mooney and left fielder Linzee Stover. “We knew we could replace them defensively a lot sooner than we could offensively, where we would have the biggest question marks.”
Question marks turned into exclamation points and titles have become the expectation even with those changes. Instead of being the brawn bully, West Greene now beats you with smarts and speed.
It’s now, more than ever, about balancing the lineup.
That showed Wednesday.
Brianna Amos and Jersey Wise each had two hits. Kylie Meek hit a run-scoring triple. And Kylie Simms, who has been the team’s catcher the last two years, had an RBI single. The bottom five hitters combined for six hits and reached base safely 10 times against Union.
“We have the ability to hit home runs but don’t have as much strength to hit them out,” Rizor said. “We lost big bats and the bottom of our lineup has had to hit more than it had in the past. We are relying on everybody. They have come alive.”
Change is inevitable. Simms and the Pioneers have found that out.
How they have responded to change is what has increased the win total to 94 games, the WPIAL championship streak to four and what they hope will be their third straight state title.
“They could get into squabbles about who is hitting where and where they are playing,” Simms said. “They have put all of that behind them for the good of the team. We have lost 11 games in four years, many of those have been by one run. It’s a special group.”