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Avery Venesky and Isabella DeRiggi have known each other since third grade. They grew up playing softball in the Abington Youth League, then for the Impact Panthers 8U and 10U travel teams.
Now, the Abington Heights seniors are hoping to cap their careers with a state championship.
On Thursday at 11 a.m., the District 2 champion Lady Comets (24-1) face District 7 champion Shaler (23-1) in the PIAA Class 5A final at Penn State University’s Nittany Lion Softball Park and Beard Field.
“We’ve been telling each other this for the whole week. This is going to be something we remember for the rest of our lives,” DeRiggi said. “It really is special we get to experience this together. We started our softball careers together and ending them together.
“For all the seniors, it’s a great way to end our high school careers. We’ve worked super-hard for this moment. We’re just going to have fun and see what happens.”
Both players’ careers have taken different paths to this point.
Venesky has been on the team for four years. As a freshman and sophomore, she was primarily used as a baserunner or defensive replacement, maybe getting an occasional at-bat. As a junior, she moved into the starting lineup, but usually had a designated player bat for her.
“I was the only freshman to make varsity and didn’t really expect to start. Especially at Abington. It’s a really hard thing to do,” Venesky said. “Even when I baseran my freshman year, I was just so grateful coach Kelly let me do that. As I progressed my sophomore and junior year, at times it was frustrating. But I just told myself I had to wait my turn, especially as an underclassman. I just have to go out and prove myself and when I get a chance to go in the game, that’s when I prove myself. But even if I was just baserunning or last year when Bella DeRiggi hit for me, when she was up to bat I was screaming the dugout cheering for her and cheering for my teammates.
“To play both offense and defense my senior year, it’s amazing. And to do it with this group of girls is even more special.”
Added Kelly: “She stuck with it. A lot of other kids may not have been real happy just playing the field and not hitting. I’m sure in her heart she wanted to do everything. But she realized what was best for the team and hung in there and waited for her chance, This year’s she’s really doing well and I’m happy for her.”
This season, she bats No. 9 in the lineup and is hitting .351 (20 for 57) with five doubles, one triple, one home run, 27 runs and 13 RBIs. Kelly has her in that spot because of her ability to turn over the lineup at the top of the order.
“She draws a lot of walks, she takes a lot of pitches. She’s really good in that position,” Kelly said. “She turns it over, she’s on base and now you have (Eva) Kane, (Adrianna) Condrad and (Avary) Brister. That usually produces a run with those three bats. And she’s an exceptional baserunner. She’s very fast and she’s aggressive, but she’s smart aggressive. She doesn’t take unnecessary chances. Just very good at running the bases.”
Case in point: Her two-out walk in the top of the second inning in Monday’s state semifinal against Upper Dublin loaded the bases for Eva Kane, who wound up hitting an inside-the-park grand slam that gave Abington Heights a 5-0 lead. Then, in the fourth inning, after Ella Long led off getting hit by a pitch, Venesky put down a perfect sacrifice bunt — despite being down 0-2 in the count — that she beat out for a base hit. After Kane sacrificed the runners over, Condrad had a RBI groundout and Brister a RBI infield single that extended the lead to 7-0.
“That (second) at-bat, coach had me bunt on what would have been my third strike. If I didn’t get it down I was out,” Venesky said. “Know he has that confidence in me get the bunt in play adds to my own confidence.
“Whether I’m hit by a pitch, walk, get a hit, I just try to get on base however I can so we can get to the top of our order. That’s usually when our momentum comes. I feel we score the most runs when the top of our order is up. When I go out there I do not play for myself. I play for those girls and do whatever I can to help the team. If me getting walked allows Eva to come up and do her thing, then I’ll do whatever I can.”
DeRiggi, meanwhile, was on Abington Heights’ junior high softball team. For her freshmen and sophomore seasons, however, she decided to play lacrosse. But she came back to softball her junior year and this season has settled in as the starting shortstop.
She called coming back the best decision she’s made.
“I missed softball a lot,” DeRiggi said. “Lacrosse was a fun sport, but I just felt like it was time to switch back to softball and get a new experience. Switching to softball elevated my high school experience. The sisterhood in softball is amazing. We all work hard together, our coaches are great, we all uplift each other. It’s not just the winning. These relationships I’ve created I’m going to remember my whole life.”
As Abington Heights’ cleanup hitter, she is batting .333 (26 for 78) with five doubles, one home run, 24 runs and 18 RBIs.
There are two other seniors on the Lady Comets roster: Melanie Picciocchi and Saige Wettstein. While they play sparingly, Kelly said they are important members of the team.
“I give kids like that a lot of credit,” Kelly said. “Especially your senior year. You know you’re not going to get a lot of playing time, but you still come to the practices, you work hard, you’re there in case someone goes down and be ready to go in and play. That’s really hard. It’s easy to come when you know you’re going to play. When you’re one of those kids who hopes to get an at-bat or hopes to get in the field for an inning or two and you still come to work, it says a lot about their character and what kind of kids they are. They’re going to be successful in life because they just work hard.”
To send its seniors out on a winning note, Abington Heights is going to have to beat a Shaler team that has lost only once this season and has been to the state final six times previously. most recent in 2023.
“We know we have our work cut out for us, they’re a real good team,” Kelly said. “We just hope we keep playing like we’ve been playing and take our chances. We have the pitching with Adrianna, we play good defense. Hopefully, we can put the ball in play and something good will happen.”
------------
PIAA title-game appearances by Lackawanna League softball teams:
2025: Valley View def. Kennard-Dale, 6-0 (4A)
2023: Mid Valley def. Juniata, 1-0 (3A)
2021: Mount Pleasant def. Mid Valley, 5-3 (3A)
2013: Valley View def. Ft. LeBoeuf, 5-0 (3A)
2012: Big Spring def. Valley View, 2-1 (3A)
2009: Curwensville def. Old Forge, 1-0 (1A)
2006: Harbor Creek def. Lakeland, 2-1 (2A)
2006: Blue Ridge def. Iroquois, 1-0 (1A)
2004: Blue Ridge def. Sto-Rox, 2-0 (1A)
2002: Penns Valley def. Blue Ridge, 1-0, (1A)
2001: Bishop O’Hara def. Sto-Rox, 3-1 (1A)
2000: Valley View def. Philipsburg-Osceola, 1-0 (2A)
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Now, the Abington Heights seniors are hoping to cap their careers with a state championship.
On Thursday at 11 a.m., the District 2 champion Lady Comets (24-1) face District 7 champion Shaler (23-1) in the PIAA Class 5A final at Penn State University’s Nittany Lion Softball Park and Beard Field.
“We’ve been telling each other this for the whole week. This is going to be something we remember for the rest of our lives,” DeRiggi said. “It really is special we get to experience this together. We started our softball careers together and ending them together.
“For all the seniors, it’s a great way to end our high school careers. We’ve worked super-hard for this moment. We’re just going to have fun and see what happens.”
Both players’ careers have taken different paths to this point.
Venesky has been on the team for four years. As a freshman and sophomore, she was primarily used as a baserunner or defensive replacement, maybe getting an occasional at-bat. As a junior, she moved into the starting lineup, but usually had a designated player bat for her.
“I was the only freshman to make varsity and didn’t really expect to start. Especially at Abington. It’s a really hard thing to do,” Venesky said. “Even when I baseran my freshman year, I was just so grateful coach Kelly let me do that. As I progressed my sophomore and junior year, at times it was frustrating. But I just told myself I had to wait my turn, especially as an underclassman. I just have to go out and prove myself and when I get a chance to go in the game, that’s when I prove myself. But even if I was just baserunning or last year when Bella DeRiggi hit for me, when she was up to bat I was screaming the dugout cheering for her and cheering for my teammates.
“To play both offense and defense my senior year, it’s amazing. And to do it with this group of girls is even more special.”
Added Kelly: “She stuck with it. A lot of other kids may not have been real happy just playing the field and not hitting. I’m sure in her heart she wanted to do everything. But she realized what was best for the team and hung in there and waited for her chance, This year’s she’s really doing well and I’m happy for her.”
This season, she bats No. 9 in the lineup and is hitting .351 (20 for 57) with five doubles, one triple, one home run, 27 runs and 13 RBIs. Kelly has her in that spot because of her ability to turn over the lineup at the top of the order.
“She draws a lot of walks, she takes a lot of pitches. She’s really good in that position,” Kelly said. “She turns it over, she’s on base and now you have (Eva) Kane, (Adrianna) Condrad and (Avary) Brister. That usually produces a run with those three bats. And she’s an exceptional baserunner. She’s very fast and she’s aggressive, but she’s smart aggressive. She doesn’t take unnecessary chances. Just very good at running the bases.”
Case in point: Her two-out walk in the top of the second inning in Monday’s state semifinal against Upper Dublin loaded the bases for Eva Kane, who wound up hitting an inside-the-park grand slam that gave Abington Heights a 5-0 lead. Then, in the fourth inning, after Ella Long led off getting hit by a pitch, Venesky put down a perfect sacrifice bunt — despite being down 0-2 in the count — that she beat out for a base hit. After Kane sacrificed the runners over, Condrad had a RBI groundout and Brister a RBI infield single that extended the lead to 7-0.
“That (second) at-bat, coach had me bunt on what would have been my third strike. If I didn’t get it down I was out,” Venesky said. “Know he has that confidence in me get the bunt in play adds to my own confidence.
“Whether I’m hit by a pitch, walk, get a hit, I just try to get on base however I can so we can get to the top of our order. That’s usually when our momentum comes. I feel we score the most runs when the top of our order is up. When I go out there I do not play for myself. I play for those girls and do whatever I can to help the team. If me getting walked allows Eva to come up and do her thing, then I’ll do whatever I can.”
DeRiggi, meanwhile, was on Abington Heights’ junior high softball team. For her freshmen and sophomore seasons, however, she decided to play lacrosse. But she came back to softball her junior year and this season has settled in as the starting shortstop.
She called coming back the best decision she’s made.
“I missed softball a lot,” DeRiggi said. “Lacrosse was a fun sport, but I just felt like it was time to switch back to softball and get a new experience. Switching to softball elevated my high school experience. The sisterhood in softball is amazing. We all work hard together, our coaches are great, we all uplift each other. It’s not just the winning. These relationships I’ve created I’m going to remember my whole life.”
As Abington Heights’ cleanup hitter, she is batting .333 (26 for 78) with five doubles, one home run, 24 runs and 18 RBIs.
There are two other seniors on the Lady Comets roster: Melanie Picciocchi and Saige Wettstein. While they play sparingly, Kelly said they are important members of the team.
“I give kids like that a lot of credit,” Kelly said. “Especially your senior year. You know you’re not going to get a lot of playing time, but you still come to the practices, you work hard, you’re there in case someone goes down and be ready to go in and play. That’s really hard. It’s easy to come when you know you’re going to play. When you’re one of those kids who hopes to get an at-bat or hopes to get in the field for an inning or two and you still come to work, it says a lot about their character and what kind of kids they are. They’re going to be successful in life because they just work hard.”
To send its seniors out on a winning note, Abington Heights is going to have to beat a Shaler team that has lost only once this season and has been to the state final six times previously. most recent in 2023.
“We know we have our work cut out for us, they’re a real good team,” Kelly said. “We just hope we keep playing like we’ve been playing and take our chances. We have the pitching with Adrianna, we play good defense. Hopefully, we can put the ball in play and something good will happen.”
------------
PIAA title-game appearances by Lackawanna League softball teams:
2025: Valley View def. Kennard-Dale, 6-0 (4A)
2023: Mid Valley def. Juniata, 1-0 (3A)
2021: Mount Pleasant def. Mid Valley, 5-3 (3A)
2013: Valley View def. Ft. LeBoeuf, 5-0 (3A)
2012: Big Spring def. Valley View, 2-1 (3A)
2009: Curwensville def. Old Forge, 1-0 (1A)
2006: Harbor Creek def. Lakeland, 2-1 (2A)
2006: Blue Ridge def. Iroquois, 1-0 (1A)
2004: Blue Ridge def. Sto-Rox, 2-0 (1A)
2002: Penns Valley def. Blue Ridge, 1-0, (1A)
2001: Bishop O’Hara def. Sto-Rox, 3-1 (1A)
2000: Valley View def. Philipsburg-Osceola, 1-0 (2A)
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