Makayla Blair spotted a familiar face first in line to congratulate her after she hit her first varsity home run earlier this season against Valley: big sister Katelynn.
“She made her way up first right by that plate, and she was the first person to congratulate me,” the Deer Lakes freshman said. “She gave me a big hug. We both try to be there for each other.”
The Blair sisters congratulating each other is becoming a familiar sight for Class 3A No. 3 Deer Lakes (8-1).
Katelynn, a junior first baseman, leads the Lancers with an .823 batting average, 25 runs scored, eight doubles, eight homers and 26 RBIs. Makayla, a freshman catcher, counters with a .500 average, two doubles, a triple, three homers and 14 RBIs.
On a red-hot Deer Lakes offense, the two stand out.
“It's honestly an amazing feeling having her with me because I've played with her my entire life growing up with softball, and it's always nice knowing she's there,” said Katelynn Blair, who recorded her third multi-homer game of the season Monday against Keystone Oaks. “She always has my back, she's always pushing me to be the best player I can possibly be. Even though she's younger, we both compete, which helps keep me on my heels and it's nice knowing that.”
The Blairs aren't the only sister act to power an Alle-Kiski Valley softball team. In fact, they're not alone in Section 1.
No. 4 Freeport (8-1, 4-1), the section co-leader with Deer Lakes, has its own pair of sister sledgehammers in the Radvans: Kristie, a senior pitcher and Pitt-Johnstown recruit, and freshman third baseman Tori.
Kristie Radvan is batting .720 and has six wins in the pitching circle, while Tori is hitting .536. Both have three homers after hitting back-to-back shots in Tuesday's win over East Allegheny.
“It's been a lot of fun watching her grow up as an athlete and a person,” Kristie Radvan said. “It's nice to finally be able to play with her. I had a lot of high expectations for her, but she's lived up to them so far.”
Katelynn and Makayla Blair began playing together from Makayla's first days in softball nearly 10 years ago, from recreational leagues to travel ball with the Pittsburgh Pride. When Makayla joined the varsity at Deer Lakes this spring, Katelynn said she had little doubt her sister would become an immediate contributor.
“She's always looking to be the best player she can, and she always gives 110 percent no matter what the situation is in the field,” Katelynn said.
Separated by three years in age, the Radvans didn't play together as much growing up: “I used to play up on her team when they needed a player, but we were never truly on the same team,” Tori said.
Knowing her sister was entrenched as a key player on Freeport's roster helped her adjust to the varsity team this spring.
“She does help me in practices and games,” Tori Radvan said. “She helps calm me down. It helped a lot (having her there) because the first game I was really scared, and she kept saying I'll do fine because I've hit off her before.”
From the beginning of the season, both sets of sisters had success. Tori Radvan went 4 for 4 in her varsity debut against Leechburg, while Kristie homered in the Yellowjackets' 6-3 win. Katelynn Blair homered twice in Deer Lakes' season opener against Northgate, and Makayla hit her first long ball two games later.
The Radvans contributed the go-ahead RBIs in a win over Armstrong, while the Blairs both hit home runs in a 14-12 victory against Freeport earlier this month.
“I was truly grateful to have the opportunity to (hit a homer), and then when she hit it, I was so happy,” Katelynn Blair said. “I couldn't hug her enough or smile enough and keep congratulating her. I was just so happy for her that she was able to come through in that situation.”
Like many siblings, these ones have some conflict in their past. Kristie Radvan said she and her sister fought over clothes growing up.
And then there was an incident in practice last week, during a fielding drill, where Tori Radvan's errant throw struck Kristie in the leg.
“We were doing throws from the outfield, and I caught the ball,” Tori said. “I was just throwing it into the catcher. It wasn't that good of a throw, but it was sort of bad. It went past the catcher, and I guess Kristie wasn't paying attention. It hit her right in the leg, and it sounded like it hit a brick wall.”
Said Kristie: “Literally I have a huge bruise on my kneecap. I guess I wasn't anticipating the ball being missed, so I kind of caught it with my knee.”
The Blair sisters' biggest fights happened when Katelynn was in the pitching circle and Makayla behind the plate.
“At least defensively, we would get in fights when she was pitching and I was catching,” Makayla Blair said. “It would be my fault if I missed the ball, and I would (say) no, it's because you pitched the ball bad. We would just make excuses to defend ourselves.”
Now, the sisters work to push each other on the field and off: “We're not jealous of each other,” Makayla Blair said. “If she gets a home run, I'm very happy for her, and if I get a home run, she's very happy with me.”
Tori Radvan said her best memory so far was Freeport's 2-0 victory over Burrell, when Kristie pitched a complete-game shutout.
“It's kind of cool with her playing third base because I can definitely hear her before every pitch encouraging me and telling me I'm going to be OK,” Kristie Radvan said.
Both Deer Lakes and Freeport have championship expectations, with the Lancers seeking their third WPIAL title this decade and the Yellowjackets the first in school history.
The sisters will play a large role in their teams' ultimate fates, and both pairs said winning a championship would only heighten the experience of playing together.
“I feel it would bring out more emotion for the both of us,” Tori Radvan said. “It would mean more that two of us from our family won.”
Said Makayla Blair: “That would mean the world. It would be a true blessing if I could be on the same field, in the same game, and just win a championship. It would be a dream come true.”
Doug Gulasy is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at dgulasy@tribweb.com or via Twitter @dgulasy_Trib.
