Bankins, Henry Lead Seneca Valley Softball Past Northwest

Seneca Valley softball coach Larry Raum offered standout shortstop Sydney Bankins some advice during her seventh-inning at-bat against Northwest on Thursday.

"Sydney, just put it in play," Raum said from the third-base coaching box. "You don't need to kill it."

Bankins responded by stroking a single up the middle and eventually scoring as the Screaming Eagles built a commanding lead. Earlier in the contest, with the outcome still in doubt, Bankins ended up "killing" the ball, along with the likelihood of a Northwest comeback.

Bankins belted a two-run home run to left-center field in the fourth inning, giving Seneca a four-run lead, and the Screaming Eagles cruised to a 14-4 victory over their Germantown rivals at Cedar Creek Park. The Seneca leadoff hitter finished 3 for 5 with three runs scored and a pair of singles.

Before Bankins hit her home run, she had to overcome her nerves.

"My friend came up to me and she was like, 'You're going to get a home run,'" Bankins said. "It makes me nervous when I go up. Raum talked to me and he was like, 'Just get a hit, that's all we need.' When I get my adrenaline pumping I know it's going to happen."

Center fielder Halley Henry, who hits second in the Seneca batting order, also hit a home run, finishing 3 for 5 with four runs and two RBIs. The left-handed-hitting Henry smashed a solo shot over the right fielder's head in the fifth inning.

"Me and home runs; I never hit home runs," Henry said. "That was my third home run in my whole entire life and I've been playing softball since I was 4. When I swing, I don't think home run."

The duo's success at the top of the Seneca batting order has helped the Screaming Eagles win nine of their last 10 games after a 1-3 start. On Thursday, Bankins and Henry used power and speed to bury their opponents on Northwest's senior night.

"They're playing their best ball at the right time," Raum said. "They're both hitting almost .600 right now. If that continues, we're going to be in good shape in the playoffs this year."

Seneca led 4-3 after a wild first inning in which the Screaming Eagles tallied four hits and committed three errors. Both teams settled and went scoreless until the fourth inning, when Seneca (10-4) took control with a five-run frame. Prior to the inning, Raum questioned certain Eagles whether they were ready to perform at a playoff-caliber level. The team responded emphatically, including extra-base hits from Kinsey Gunn (leadoff double), Bankins (two-run homer) and Mary Adkins (RBI triple).

Seneca added one run in the fifth and four in the seventh.

"I thought they responded really well," Raum said. "The problem is that we had just played three teams that traditionally aren't real good and I was worried about their mindset of playing at a much higher level. [Northwest] is a 4A [team] --- 4As are hard to beat. We're the smallest 3A in the state, so 4As are tough to beat. I was really concerned whether they would up their level or not and I thought six or seven of them did and two or three hadn't at the time."

First baseman Gunn finished 3 for 3 for Seneca. Left fielder Adkins was 2 for 5, pitcher Magen Harris went 2 for 3 with four RBIs and catcher Jen Arruda was 1 for 4 with two RBIs.

In the circle, Harris earned the victory with a complete-game effort. The right-hander allowed four runs --- two earned --- and scattered eight hits while walking one and striking out eight.

After scoring four runs in the top of the first, Seneca nearly gave it all back in the bottom half. Northwest's first two batters reached via error and catcher Emily Forst drove them in with a single to center. Jenna Brown followed with an RBI single to cut Seneca's lead to 4-3. The Screaming Eagles committed a third error in the inning, but the Jaguars stranded runners on second and third.

Harris limited Northwest to one run the rest of the game.

"They put the ball in play real hard, we hadn't seen that in three games, we weren't ready for it and we screwed them all up," Raum said. "... I don't think it bothered [Harris] that much because that's happened a couple times to her this year. If we have a major weakness it would be in the first inning and she has come to adjust to that. She's always even-keeled. She doesn't get upset. She's a real team player. She knows the ball was hit hard, and sometimes the mistake is hers because the ball shouldn't be hit that hard, not in the first inning."

The loss snapped a five-game win streak for Northwest (8-6), which hadn't lost since April 14. The Jaguars outscored their previous five opponents 38-9, but struggled on their senior night.

"It's an emotional day for them, even before we get out on the field with everything coming to an end here, last home game," head coach Kevin Corpuz said. "The end was very emotional, too. The girls, they played their hearts out and to come out with a loss on a day like today, that makes it even tougher. ...

"We talked about it and hey, we've got to move forward from here. It's a loss. Bottom line is: we've got a couple more games to play and playoffs. You can beat yourself up over it or you can just try and make the adjustments and look to move forward and that's what we'll do."

Forst finished 3 for 4 with two RBIs for Northwest. Third baseman Brown had two hits, and first baseman Paige Callahan, second baseman Taylor Simpson and outfielder Erica Chopas each had one hit.

Freshman Lily Schenkel started in the circle and suffered the loss for Northwest, pitching three-plus innings.

Northwest seniors Forst, Callahan, Chopas, Ciarra Crisostomo, Sarah Weaver, Kassie Nantz and Anne Harris each played their final home game.

The loss was "very disappointing," Forst said. "We worked so hard for it, but it's just a big lesson learned and we just have to come out and forget about it and move on."

Northwest will travel to face Sherwood at 2:30 p.m. on Saturday and Watkins Mill at 5:15 p.m. on Tuesday. Seneca will host Clarksburg at 5:15 p.m. today and Wootton at 5:15 p.m. on Monday.

"I'm really happy where we're at right now, at 10-4," Raum said. "If you're 1-3, you can start to have some doubts. They've hung together as a team and [tonight] we put on a nice little offensive show."