Lehigh Valley’s Carpenter Cup softball team, which included Emmaus players Maddy Clark, Hannah Palinkas and Alexis Ruth, finished the Carpenter Cup tournament in fourth place last month at FDR Park in Philadelphia.

Lehigh Valley’s last game, which was against Delaware County North, ended in an 8-7 loss for Lehigh Valley, its second loss in the double-elimination tournament.

“A lot of us thought we had it in the bag,” said Clark. “It was stressful because they started hitting the gap.”

Lehigh Valley was ahead 5-0 until the sixth inning when Delaware County North scored eight runs.

“That inning where everything went wrong, a lot of teams would have folded up their tents, but we hit hard and never gave up,” said Lehigh Valley head coach Blake Morgan.

Palinkas was pitching at the time.

“She was fighting out there, and we couldn’t make the final out for her,” Morgan said.

What Lehigh Valley did stage a comeback in the seventh inning.

Northampton’s Heather Alich had an RBI triple and scored on an error, and Palinkas hit a two-out double. Palinkas also made a big catch in right field.

“They played so hard the right way. Sometimes they have to just go play and have fun, and that’s what they did,” said Morgan.

Lehigh Valley’s first loss was against Berks County/LL by a score of 7-2 on the first day of the tournament, which was June 19. Berks was the eventual Carpenter Cup softball champion.

Also on the first day, Lehigh Valley won its opener against Jersey Shore 2-0.

Lehigh Valley then won three games, defeating Philadelphia Catholic League 2-1, Suburban One/Bicentennial Athletic 15-0, and Delaware County West 14-0, which had been continued from the previous day because of rain.

“It wasn’t difficult for our team, specifically,” said Clark. “It was good for us to have that rest because it was so hot that day, and then we could come back the next morning.”

Returning to a 4-0 lead, Whitehall’s Rachel Arner had an RBI double that scored Ruth, which was the first of nine more runs for Lehigh Valley.

Since the Carpenter Cup softball tournament is also a college showcase, coach Morgan had his players choose three colleges they hoped to invite to see them play.

“Moravian is my dream school, and I love the campus,” said Clark, who had the first RBI and scored the fifth run in Lehigh Valley’s last game. “You look behind the dugout [at the Carpenter Cup] and you see, like, eight [college] coaches with their clipboards.

“Everyone on our team was really mature about how they were playing the game and accepting their mistakes. I’m glad I got to experience it and make new friends, no matter the outcome. And you can almost pick up on the strengths and weaknesses of the other girls for when the [high school] season comes around.”