The contact percentage numbers help Dave Pollick sleep at night.

Barely eking out wins in the first three rounds of the PIAA Class AAA tournament and never holding a lead for more than a half-inning throughout its run to today's title game, Pollick's Susquehannock softball team has averaged only 1.35 runs per seven innings during state play.

With the Warriors still putting the ball in play during more than 80 percent of their at-bats, the coach is not too concerned about the defending champions' offense.

"What I've seen, honestly, is a team that has earned everything it's gotten, because we have not been getting any of the breaks at all," Pollick said. "So what I've been preaching is the party line: They are doing what we ask them to do, we're still winning, and when the breaks start coming our way, we're going to really bust open."

There's been no busting open yet, only tightly-contested games, including a quarterfinal that lasted 17 innings before the Warriors pulled out a 2-1 victory.

It hasn't been the same steamroll to the title game it was for last year's squad that outscored opponents 11-0 in the first three rounds. Thanks to
consistently strong pitching from ace Megan Sheaf and timely hitting, it hasn't mattered.

Fighting for their survival at every turn, the Warriors (23-2) now have only seven innings between them and a second straight title, even if they will have to topple undefeated juggernaut Milton (24-0) in a noon

"I'm excited because I really didn't think it was going to happen again," senior shortstop Erin Clary said. "So it's kind of just like last year."

Freshmen Katie Swade, Chelsea Shockey and Carley Nickles have fit in nicely with veterans such as Clary, Sheaf, Steph Albright and Lauren Hiebler, creating a lineup that makes up for it's lack of big-time pop with consistency throughout.

All nine starters are batting at least .267, with Sheaf leading the way at .364.

The cleanup hitter is better known for her work on the mound than at the plate. Furnishing firepower and poise from the rubber, Sheaf gives the Warriors what Pollick describes as "the ultimate safety net." Every time the Warriors have provided the junior hurler with at least one run this season, Susquehannock has won.

"We've been in so many tight situations and I think we have an advantage," said Sheaf, who is averaging 11.8 strikeouts per seven innings this season. "We know what it feels like to be under pressure."

According to Pollick, examples of the Warriors not getting any of the breaks over the first three rounds include hitting line drives directly at opponents, having potential extra-base hits get caught in the wind, and facing stellar defensive opposition almost every game.

"I warned everybody before the season began that everybody is going to come gunning for us," Pollick said. "They are going to play their best game of the year against us because they want to beat the defending champion and that's exactly what's happening.

"Teams that normally average two and three or even four errors a game are making zero when they play us."

It's not enough to make Pollick change his game plan. The Susquehannock coach has told his players to keep swinging away and making contact.

"The old joke is when you throw a ball, three things can happen and two of them are bad," Pollick said. "I look at it the other way around. When you swing a bat, three things can happen and two of them are good. I'll take my chances."
smclernon@ydr.com; 771-2045

TODAY'S GAME

PIAA Softball Tournament
Class AAA championship

Who: Susquehannock (24-2) vs. Milton (24-0)
   When: Noon today
   Where: Robb Field, Shippensburg University
   Radio: WOYK-AM 1350
   TV: PCN