PLUM — The plug was pulled on Knoch's softball season by a power surge Monday afternoon.

Elizabeth Forward belted three home runs, two of them coming in the fourth inning, as the top-seeded Warriors avoided an upset by defeating the Knights 7-5 in a WPIAL Class 4A quarterfinal at Plum High School.

It was the 14th straight win for Elizabeth Forward (16-2), which is undefeated against teams from Pennsylvania this spring. The Warriors are ranked No. 1 in the state.

“Take the long ball out of the equation and it's a different game,” said Knoch coach Gary Coe. “It's a short field, but both teams were playing on it.”

The Knights (10-8) were leading 5-3 in the bottom of the fourth inning when the Warriors received a solo shot from Kailey Larcinese and, three batters later, a two-run homer off the bat of Anna Resnik to move ahead, 6-5.

Bailey Rickenbrode, who had started in the circle for Knoch, was relieved by Brynnae Coe two batters later.

“We hit 15 home runs this season before today's game,” said EF coach Harry Rutherford. “We can hit the long ball every once in a while.”

It was up to Larcinese to protect the lead and the Knights had already gotten to the star pitcher. Brynnae Coe hit a two-run home run off of the senior in the bottom of the third inning, giving Knoch its two-run lead.

But Larcinese pitched four shut-out innings to close the game, not allowing a hit in that span. She earned the win while striking out six and walking one and surrendered five hits.

With a runner on and two outs in the top of the seventh, Knoch's Lindsay Edwards hit a ball to deep left, but it was caught by Carlee Soukup to end the game.

“We knew what Kailey is capable of,” said Rutherford. “After that home run, she got down on herself, but she battled through it.”

Elizabeth Forward won the WPIAL title in 2019, defeating Knoch in the semifinals.

“We had 'em on the ropes today,” said Gary Coe. “A timely hit or two could've have made a difference in that game two years ago and it could've made a difference today.”

The Warriors' first home run, a three-run blast from Grace Smith, put the Knights down 3-0 in the first inning. Knoch then benefitted from poor defense.

Two errors, both with two outs, allowed the Knights to plate three runs to tie the game in the top of the second. Rickenbrode helped her own cause with a run-scoring single.

“That wasn't us on defense,” said Rutherford. “We had just seven errors in 17 games before today. A three-run lead is normally a lock for this team.”

Brynnae Coe worked the final 2 2/3 innings for the Knights, allowing a run on two hits.

Gary Coe was pleased with the mind-set his team carried into a game in which it was a heavy underdog.

“I told them before the game that we didn't need one player to be the all-star, we just needed everyone to contribute,” he said. “It was a successful season.”

Knoch 032 000 0 — 5 5 1

Eliz. Forward 300 310 x — 7 9 3

W: Kailey Larcinese 7 IP (6K, 1BB). L: Bailey Rickenbrode 3.1 IP (2K, 3BB)

Knoch (10-8): Brynnae Coe HR 2RBI, Marissa Melius 2-1B, Bailey Rickenbrode 1B R RBI

Elizabeth Forward (16-2): Anna Resnik HR 2R 2RBI, Bri Sersevic 2-1B R, Grace Smith 1B HR 3RBI, Kailey Larcinese 1B HR 2RBI