Pictured the 16U Dawgs. In the front row, from the left, are Kylee Whiting, Ande Northrup, Rylee Whiting, Brynn Hallock, Lillian Holevinski and Coach Adrian Whiting. In the back row are Coach Matt Burke, Teagan Burke, Jayna Thomas, Morghyn Ross, Kyla Ziegler, Carilene Sliwa and Coach Jason Holevinski. Submitted photo

Back in February, the Dawgs 16U travel softball team won a USSSA National Qualifier to punch their ticket to the 2025 USSSA Eastern Nationals in Ocean City, Maryland.

Fast forward to the last week in July, and the Dawgs took advantage of that opportunity by playing ten games and going through the week undefeated en route to a USSSA 16U National Championship.

The 46 team double-elimination tournament featured teams from all over the east coast including Delaware, New Jersey, New York, Maryland and Pennsylvania. The Dawgs went 2-0-2 in pool play and then won six consecutive bracket games for an 8-0-2 record and a USSSA Eastern National title.

Games began Monday afternoon and culminated with the National Championship game Saturday morning. Not only did the Dawgs have to compete against top notch competition, they also had to battle the elements with temperatures hitting a real feel of 112 degrees on the field.

The team was led by the electric pitching performances of Brynn Hallock (30 strikeouts) and Kylee Whiting (34 strikeouts). The duo combined to throw five consecutive shutouts in bracket play which earned both players the award of Co-Outstanding Pitchers of the Tournament. Hallock and Whiting, two of Allegany County’s best pitchers, combined to power the Dawgs through the tournament.

Offensively, Teagan Burke hit .500 (10-20) with four doubles, 9 RBIs, six walks and nine runs scored and Morgyhn Ross hit .500 (10-20) with five doubles, 8 RBIs, six runs scored and a 3-run home run. Both Burke and Ross were named Nationals Tournament Co-Most Valuable Players.

In addition, Jayna Thomas hit .409 (9-22) with seven runs scored including a 3-3 performance at the plate in the championship game. Rylee Whiting hit .333 (8-24) with 9 RBIs, scored nine runs and produced on the base paths with aggressive running.

Defensively, Ande Northrup, Teagan Burke, Addy Mulone and Rylee Whiting were outstanding in the infield while Carilene Sliwa, Jayna Thomas, Kyla Ziegler and Brynn Hallock played flawless in the outfield.

In addition to her dominance in the circle, Hallock crushed a 3-run HR in bracket play to break the game open in the first inning. Hallock finished the tournament with 8 RBIs.

Lillian Holevinski, (8-21) shared the catching duties and contributed 4 RBIs including a big hit to drive in two runs in the championship game.

The Dawgs advanced to the title game when Carilene Sliwa singled with two outs in the last inning, stole second and advanced to third. Then, took advantage of an opportunity to race home with a head first slide to score the winning run and send the Dawgs to the finals.

En route to the title, the Dawgs defeated Complete Game Academy, New Jersey Outlaws, St. Mary’s Pounders, Beacon Extreme, Lower Bucks Bombers and New Jersey Storm.