Eagles cap wire-to-wire run with third straight 1A state title; Chesapeake-Anne Arundel, Spalding, Glen Burnie and Eastern Tech finish in Top 5
It’s not often that a Class 1A softball program can rise to the top of the area polls and stay there for three straight years, but it is not often that any team, regardless of level, comes up with a pitcher like Bohemia Manor junior Maddie Penta, hands down the most dominant force in the circle in the state. For a third straight year, Penta leads Bohemia Manor to the No. 1 ranking in the final 2019 VSN Softball Top 20.
Penta has been in the forefront as the Eagles have won three straight 1A state championships, with the most recent coming on Saturday against Sparrows Point at the University of Maryland. Penta threw a no-hitter against the Pointers and tied a state record with 19 strikeouts in the championship game.
Bo Manor, which finished 21-1, suffered its only loss to IAAM runner-up John Carroll School, which finished No. 14 in our final poll, in mid-season. Penta, however, did not start that game and the Patriots scored all five of their runs prior to her entrance into the game for the final three innings. She struck out all nine batters she faced.
Chesapeake-Anne Arundel (3A) and Glen Burnie (4A), two Anne Arundel County schools who also reached their respective state title games only to come up short, held their ground in the Top, at No. 2 and No. 4, respectively. IAAM A champion Archbishop Spalding stayed at No. 3 and Eastern Tech of Baltimore County, which reached the 2A state semifinals, ended the year at No. 5.
Here is the complete Final 2019 VSN Softball Top 20:
FINAL 2019 VSN SOFTBALL TOP 20
1. BOHEMIA MANOR
Previous rank: #1
Final record: 22-1
Last week: def. Brunswick, 4-2, 1A State Semifinals at Bachman Park; def. Sparrows Point, 8-0, 1A State Championship at University of Maryland.
Season Complete: 1A State Champions
2. CHESAPEAKE-ANNE ARUNDEL
Previous rank: #2
Final record: 20-3
Last week: def. Linganore, 3-0, 3A State Semifinals at Bachman Park; lost to Huntingtown, 2-0, 3A State Championship at University of Maryland
Season Complete: 3A State Runner-up
3. ARCHBISHOP SPALDING
Previous rank: #3
Final record: 10-4
Season Complete: IAAM A Conference Champion
4. GLEN BURNIE
Previous rank: #4
Final record: 19-3
Last week: def. Walt Whitman, 3-1, 4A State Semifinals at Bachman Park; lost to Sherwood, 8-7, 4A State Championship at University of Maryland
Season Complete: 4A State Runner-up
5. EASTERN TECH
Previous rank: #5
Current record: 16-3
Last week: lost to La Plata, 6-3, 2A State Semifinals at Bachman Park
Season Complete: 2A State Semifinalist
6. BEL AIR
Previous rank: #6
Final record: 12-6
Last week: lost to Huntingtown, 10-2, 3A State Semifinals at Bachman Park
Season Complete: 3A State Semifinalist
7. TOWSON
Previous rank: #7
Final record: 15-3
Season Complete: 3A North Region Finalists
8. SEVERNA PARK
Previous rank: #8
Final record: 15-5
Season Complete: 4A East Region Section I Finalist
9. MCDONOGH SCHOOL
Previous rank: #9
Final record: 14-4
Season Complete: IAAM A Conference Semifinalist
10. HOWARD
Previous rank: #10
Final record: 15-5
Season Complete: 4A North Region Finalists
11. PATTERSON MILL
Previous rank: #11
Final record: 16-4
Season Complete: 1A East Region Finalists
12. CATONSVILLE
Previous rank: #12
Final record: 15-5
13. DULANEY
Previous rank: #13
Final record: 15-4
Season Complete: 4A North Region Finalists
14. JOHN CARROLL
Previous rank: #14
Final record: 8-8
Season Complete: IAAM A Conference Runner-up
15. MOUNT DE SALES ACADEMY
Previous rank: #15
Final record: 13-5
Season Complete: IAAM A Conference Semifinalist
16. GLENELG
Previous rank: #16
Final record: 13-8
Season Complete: 2A South Region Finalists
17. RIVER HILL
Previous rank: #17
Final record: 13-5
Season Complete: 2A South Region Section I Finalists
18. MANCHESTER VALLEY
Previous rank: #18
Final record: 15-6
Season Complete: 3A West Region Finalists
19. ST. PAUL’S SCHOOL
Previous rank: #19
Final record: 11-0
Season Complete: IAAM B Champions
20t. HAMMOND
Previous rank: #20t
Final record: 14-5
Season Complete: 2A South Region Section I Semifinalists
20t. NORTH COUNTY
Previous rank: #20t
Final record: 13-5
Season Complete: 2A East Region Section I Semifinalists
