Agape Freedom Sports LLC

WRITTEN BY: JERIC YURKANIN

On a Thursday afternoon in Archbald, with that late-season edge starting to creep into every pitch, every swing, every moment, the matchup between Valley View and North Pocono felt like more than just another game on the schedule.

This wasn’t just about standings.

This was about identity.

This was about proving something.

For the Lady Cougars, it was a game of truth — the kind of game that does not just test your talent, but challenges your belief. A moment where a team looks in the mirror and answers the question nobody else can answer for them.

Do we still have it?

And following it through the game updates, watching how the seventh inning unfolded, it took me somewhere unexpected.

Back to Field of Dreams.

A story about belief when nothing around you says to believe.

Ray Kinsella, walking through his cornfield, hearing that voice in the quiet…

“If you build it, he will come.”

A message that didn’t make sense. A vision nobody else could see. And yet, despite the doubt, despite the risk, despite everything telling him it was crazy, he built it anyway.

He put in the work.

He trusted what he couldn’t yet see.

Even when the results weren’t there.

Even when people questioned him.

Even when it looked like nothing was coming.

He kept building.

He kept believing.

And eventually…

It came.

That’s what Thursday felt like.

Because if you’ve followed Valley View this season, you know the story has not been perfect.

A 6-0 loss to Abington Heights — the top team in the rankings.

A 3-2 loss to North Pocono back on April 11.

A near slip against West Scranton, where the tying run stood on base in the bottom of the seventh before the Cougars escaped with a 6-5 win.

Then a gritty 5-2 win over a tough Wallenpaupack team — not flashy, just earned.

And a 12-0 statement over Delaware Valley.

Wins, yes.

But not always clean.

Not always dominant.

And if we’re being real?

Doubt started to creep in.

Even for me.

There were moments where it felt like Valley View wasn’t quite clicking the way we’ve come to expect. Moments where the rhythm felt just a step off. Moments where you start asking quiet questions you don’t say out loud.

But here’s the thing about this group.

While people were questioning, they were working.

While others were watching results, they were building something deeper.

They stayed locked in.

They stayed together.

They stayed believing.

And no one embodied that more than Cora Castellani.

Because if you rewind to April 11, the script looked painfully familiar.

Bottom of the seventh. Valley View trailing 3-1.

Mady Minelli gets hit — a spark.

Ella Swingle reaches on an error — life.

Then Castellani steps in and lines a ball into center. Minelli scores. The Cougars are within one. You can feel the energy starting to build, even through the updates, the moment getting bigger.

Bases loaded after Abbi Call is intentionally walked.

The pressure is right there.

But then…

A fielder’s choice at the plate. A runner cut down.

Two outs.

And just like that, the momentum slips.

A lineout to right ends it.

Game over.

A 3-2 loss.

So close, but not enough.

And sometimes those are the losses that stick with you the most.

The ones where you felt it.

The ones where you almost finished it.

The ones that quietly sit with you when nobody’s watching.

Now fast forward to Thursday, April 23.

Same stage.

Same opponent.

Same tension in the air.

And almost the exact same script.

Seventh inning.

Valley View down 3-2.

One swing away from either heartbreak or redemption.

But before the ending came the grind.

North Pocono struck first in the top of the first when Riley Grambo scored after Adysen Iyoob reached on an error, giving the Trojans a 1-0 lead. Valley View could have let that early run create pressure, but instead, the Cougars answered right away.

In the bottom half, Abbi Call walked and Ella Swingle dropped down a bunt single, pushing Call to third and immediately putting pressure back on North Pocono. Then Maggie Hallett delivered one of the biggest early swings of the game, ripping a double to left that scored both Call and Swingle and gave Valley View a 2-1 lead.

“When the pitch came in, I knew I had to do something to put us on the board, so I swung at a pitch I knew I could connect with,” said Valley View catcher Maggie Hallett. “I knew we needed to strike early by winning the inning and taking the lead, setting the tone that we were not going to give up, but rise to the challenge.”

North Pocono answered in the second when Amelia Bell singled to center, scoring courtesy runner Mikhayla Murphy to tie the game at 2-2. The Trojans kept putting pressure on the bases, but Valley View found ways to escape damage, including ending innings with outs on the base paths and keeping the game from slipping away.

That mattered.

Because in a game like this, every run feels heavier.

Every missed chance feels louder.

Every defensive play carries a little extra weight.

Grace Munley worked through the early innings for Valley View, battling through traffic and keeping the Cougars close. North Pocono threatened. The Trojans put runners on. But Valley View never let the game get away.

In the third, North Pocono went down quietly as Munley settled in. Riley Grambo struck out looking, Avarie Roscioli grounded out to short, and Cameron Forgione popped out in foul territory to Hallett behind the plate.

Valley View had a chance in the bottom half when Zoie Krupovich singled to left, but the Cougars could not push a run across.

The fourth inning stayed tight. North Pocono got a double from Anna Havenstrite, but Munley came back with back-to-back strikeouts to end the threat. Valley View went quietly in the bottom half, and the tension only continued to build.

Then came the fifth.

North Pocono reclaimed the lead when Bell singled to right, moved up, and eventually scored after Grambo reached on an error. Just like that, the Trojans were back in front, 3-2.

The pressure shifted back onto Valley View.

The question returned.

Do we still have it?

In the bottom of the fifth, Call was intentionally walked, but North Pocono worked around it. Swingle flew out. Castellani flew out. Hallett popped out.

Still 3-2.

In the sixth, Valley View turned to Abbi Call in the circle, and she delivered exactly what the Cougars needed. She came in with the game sitting on the edge and gave Valley View life. Iyoob struck out looking. Havenstrite grounded out. Paige Dymek struck out swinging.

Three outs.

Clean inning.

Still within reach.

Valley View couldn’t score in the bottom of the sixth, but Call came right back in the seventh and shut North Pocono down again. Olivia Charles struck out looking. Bell struck out looking. Isabella Forgione singled, but Grambo grounded out to short to end the inning.

And that set the stage.

Bottom of the seventh.

Valley View down 3-2.

One inning left.

One chance left.

That is when the story started to feel like it was writing itself.

“If you build it, he will come.”

— Field of Dreams

“If you set her up to win it… she will.”

— Jeric Yurkanin

Nevaeh Evans grounded out to start the inning.

One out.

Then Abbi Call stepped in and was intentionally walked.

Respect.

Strategy.

Pressure.

North Pocono chose to put the tying run on base, and now Valley View had life.

Ella Swingle came up next and delivered. She drove a line drive into left field, the ball finding grass as Call came racing around. Swingle advanced all the way to third on the throw, and Call crossed the plate.

Tie game.

3-3.

The dugout came alive.

And even watching it through updates, you could feel it.

That moment.

That belief.

That chance.

And then, fittingly, Cora Castellani stepped to the plate.

Because sometimes the game has a way of writing its own ending.

This time, there was no almost.

No runner cut down at the plate.

No lineout to end the dream.

This time, Castellani lined a ball into left field.

Clean.

Sharp.

No doubt.

Swingle scored.

Ballgame.

Walk-off.

Valley View 4, North Pocono 3.

And just like that, everything they had been building, everything they had been believing in when others started to question, showed up when it mattered most.

“Cora is one of my best friends, and to see her succeed after struggling makes me happy,” said Abbi Call. “I did my best to lift her up when she was down, and I’m so happy she got to perform in this moment.”

Head coach Mia Wascura added, “Cora really is a student of the game. She analyzes teams, knows how to break film and spray charts down, and knows what to anticipate. She puts in the reps and the extra work. In fact, she was hitting before the game after she got out of school, before we even stepped onto the field. She’s a true gamer.”

Valley View found a way to do just enough offensively while leaning on timely execution and patience at the plate. The Lady Cougars were led by Swingle, who sparked the lineup with a 2-for-4 day, two runs scored, and an RBI, consistently putting pressure on North Pocono’s defense. Hallett delivered in a key moment with a double and two RBIs, while Castellani and Krupovich each added hits to keep innings alive.

Even without an overwhelming hit total, Valley View made its opportunities count. The Cougars drew five walks as a team and capitalized when the game was on the line. Their ability to manufacture runs, stay patient, and deliver in the biggest moment proved to be the difference.

“Hit for contact, and base hits win games,” Hallett said. “No need to kill the ball. Stay positive, work as a team, and have each other’s backs.”

She continued, “This was a really big game, and hopefully this will help us move up in the standings and provide us with some confidence for the rest of the season.”

In the circle, Valley View’s pitching staff set the tone with a strong combined effort, striking out nine and allowing just one earned run across seven innings. Munley kept things steady early before Call came in and shut the door, striking out five over three innings and allowing just two hits to earn the win.

“My mindset coming into the game was to just get the job done,” Call said. “I knew I had to step up and help my team out. I tried to stay calm and do what I know how to do.”

She added, “We knew we had to stay disciplined, especially in the big moments. We got the job done, and being patient allowed my team to get runners on and put them into position to score. We feed off pressure. Most teams crumble. It feeds a fire in us to keep pushing until the last out.”

Defensively, despite a few miscues, the Cougars made the plays they needed when it mattered most. North Pocono showed plenty of fight with eight hits, led by Isabella Forgione’s three-hit performance and contributions from Bell and Havenstrite, but the Trojans struggled to fully capitalize.

In the end, this was a game defined by execution in key moments.

And Valley View delivered.

“Our team never stopped,” Wascura said. “We responded in typical Cougar fashion. Cora Castellani loves pressure situations, and I would want no one else but her to be in that kind of position. She responds when the time comes. Extremely proud of her.”

She added, “The middle of the lineup really produced for us today. We needed to change our approach at the plate and stay tight to the ball rather than have big swings, and we made those adjustments and came out with the victory. Abbi and Grace combined were fantastic. I knew by the third time through the order they would be able to time Grace up, so we threw Abbi, and it proved to help us.”

And when you step back from the box score, from the stats, from even the walk-off itself, what remains is something bigger than one game in late April.

It is a reminder of where this story started.

Belief in the unseen.

Trust in the work.

The courage to keep building when nothing guarantees the result.

On Thursday, Valley View did not just win a softball game. The Cougars answered that question from the beginning.

Do we still have it?

The answer echoed in the seventh inning.

In Swingle’s game-tying double.

In Call racing home.

In Castellani stepping into another pressure moment and delivering the swing everyone in that dugout believed she could deliver.

And just like that cornfield turned ballpark, something real showed up.

Because when Valley View needed a big hit, when the moment needed someone to finish it, Cora Castellani was once again the choice. Two walk-off hits this season. Two moments where the game found her. Two moments where pressure became opportunity.

Some players avoid those moments.

Some players survive them.

Cora Castellani seems to welcome them.

“It definitely wasn’t my best game, both on defense and offense, so during my last at-bat, I kind of just told myself that this was the most important at-bat all day,” Castellani said. “I needed to make sure to stay down on the ball and put it in play. And that’s exactly what I did.”

She continued, “I would definitely say I have the most confidence in these situations. I have been put in them during both softball and basketball, so I know how to handle it. I keep calm, breathe, and just let my talent do the work for me in these types of situations. I get up to the plate and just swing the bat — no extra thoughts.”

And maybe that is what makes this Valley View team dangerous as the postseason begins to come into view.

They are not perfect.

They have been tested.

They have been doubted.

They have had games where the rhythm was missing and moments where the questions were fair.

But they are still here.

Still building.

Still believing.

Still finding ways to finish.

And on Thursday in Archbald, under that late-season pressure, against one of the best teams in the Lackawanna Conference, Valley View showed something that cannot always be measured in a stat line.

Heart.

Response.

Belief.

And when it mattered most, they built the moment.

Then Cora came. “If you set her up to win it.. She will”  and she did!

This was not in Dyersville, Iowa, it was Archbald Pennsylvania.  A walk off hit by Cora!

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