Side By Side
GENEVA — They came from neighboring high schools.
Mars graduate Marina Manuppelli and Seneca Valley graduate Madison Schultz have virtually been neighbors on the softball and baseball field since.
“We played each other in high school, but we didn't really know each other then,” Schultz said.
They've been three-year starters for the Geneva College softball team. Both made second team All-Presidents' Athletic Conference as freshmen.
Both were looking to be standouts as juniors for the Golden Tornadoes this spring — Schultz starting at third base, Manuppelli at first — before the COVID-19 pandemic curtailed the season.
And both worked as ballgirls for the Pittsburgh Pirates the past two summers. A former Geneva player was a Pirate ballgirl and told Zanic the Bucs were looking to hire a few more. Anjelica Diehl, a Genevca assistant coach, is also a Pirate ballgirl.
“A chance to go down on the field like that during the summer? We couldn't pass that up,” Schultz said.
“If the Pirates were playing this year, we'd be back at PNC Park fielding their foul balls for them,” Manuppelli said.
They expected to be part of a team doing a lot of damage inside the foul lines beforehand.
“We had some nice freshmen join the team this year and had to move some players around,” Geneva coach Van Zanic said. “It was like a domino effect. Marina moved from third base to first base. Madison moved from secod base to third.
“Honestly, if we wouldn't have gone on to win the PAC championship this year, I'd have been disappointed.”
“I was happy to go back to third base,” Schultz said. “We had a senior second baseman get a concussion and I was asked to move over there. But my natural position is third.”
Now it's Manuppelli who is getting used to a new position.“We got a freshman third baseman who is really good, so they shifted me to first base,” she said. “I haven't played first since I was 10.“I was just getting used to the position when everything was shut down.”Manuppelli was off to a torrid start at the plate this season, hitting .370 with a homer and seven RBI through eight games. She hit .295 and led Geneva with two homers and 26 RBI last year after hitting .333 as a freshman.After hitting .376 her freshman year, Schultz slipped to .232 last season. She was hitting .250 with a homer and four RBI so far this year.“Her bat was coming around again,” Zanic said of Schultz. “She hit her first home run during our trip to Florida.”While Schultz moved to the No. 2 spot in the batting order this year, Manuppelli is the team's No. 4 hitter.Nicknamed “Sauce,” driving home runs is her forte.“The RBI has always been the statistic Sauce has cared about the most,” Zanic said.“When I was in high school, kids started to call me 'Marinara Sauce' since my first name is Marina and it was shortened to 'Sauce' by my senior year,” Manuppelli said, laughing. “I've just carried that name with me.”Next season, Manuppelli and Schultz will become four-year starters. They will be two of four seniors on the squad.“We're only losing two seniors,” Schultz said. “I know we're going to be good. It will be our last season together.“Marina and I have carpooled a lot the last few years. We've done four or five Pirate games (as ballgirls) a month. I've got her back on and off the field and I know she's got mine.”Manuppelli's goals for next year are basic.“Improve my bat speed and play every game like it's my last,” she said. “I just want to play with heart.“Intensity on the field in college ... That's the biggest difference from high school.”Zanic described the pair as “cornerstones in our program.”He said Manuppelli's personality is “as infectious as any player I've coached in 18 years.“She's the same whether she goes 0-for-8 or hits two home runs in a doubleheader,” the coach said. “Marina is happy all the time. The rest of the team just gravitates to her.”
