Riders earn crown

Ichabod Crane finishes unbeaten with a pair of double-digit wins

“Wreck everyone and leave.” That’s what’s on the back of the Ichabod Crane softball T-shirts this season. That’s also what a lot of people were saying about coach Tracy Nytransky’s squad after it walked away with a state title to add to the one it won in 2018 on the field and in 2021 in the state sportswriters’ rankings.

“I don’t know what to say,” Nytransky said after the Riders beat Depew 14-2 in the semifinals then Chenango Valley 12-0 in the title game. “I watched (Chenango Valley’s) semifinal game and they had hitters and I didn’t know what to expect. I didn’t expect that.”

Nytransky noted how the team lost its top pitcher from last spring and that there were many new and young players this year. But since a 4-1 win early in the year, Ichabod Crane steamrolled almost every team it played on the way to an undefeated season and a wellearned Class B title at Saturday’s state softball final at Moriches Athletic Complex.

The outcome was in doubt only for the first three innings of the game against Depew. Ichabod Crane scored two runs in the first but the Section VI champion tied the game in the top of the third inning. The Wildcats’ runs were just the 12th and 13th of the season allowed by Riders’ pitchers but that’s all freshman hurler Kari Graziano allowed on championship day.

“I was a little nervous at first, but my teammates settled me down,” Graziano said. “They kept me in the game. We have a bunch of girls who are very cohesive, and I knew we could go far.”

Graziano helped her cause at the plate in the first game with two hits. She added three more in the title game to augment the gaudy numbers she had for the day. Graziano had 10 strikeouts and allowed just eight hits and two walks in 11 innings of work.

“We have a lot of young players, but we bonded,” sophomore Ava Heffner said afterward. “It’s amazing.”

Ichabod Crane pulled away from Depew with a seven-run fourth inning. Three more runs in the fifth inning ended the game due to the 12-run mercy rule. Claire Knapp homered, Makayla Walsh had three hits and Morgan Ormerod and Knapp finished with two hits apiece to fuel the 16-hit attack.

In the title game against Section IV’s champion, the Riders pounded out 12 hits and scored three runs in the first and second innings to end any hope Chenango Valley had of staying close.

“We’re normally a goodhitting team, but not today,” Chenango Valley coach Alanna Jenkins said. “They (the Riders) were great.”

Emma Scheitinger had three hits to match Graziano’s effort in the title game, Walsh homered, and Heffner and Carolina Williams had two hits apiece to lead the attack. Ichabod Crane’s defense was spotless on the day as well.