Robbinsville rolls into semifinals on run rule

ROBBINSVILLE >> The only mystery at the Robbinsville High School softball team’s state tournament game Wednesday was why is North Plainfield nicknamed the Canucks.

More on that later. As for the game itself, although North Plainfield (12-5) hung tough for a while, in the end it was Robbinsville (204) prevailing on the run rule as it beat the Canucks, 10-0, in six innings.

Robbinsville is scheduled to return to Central Jersey Group II action Thursday in a semifinal home game against Manasquan and its hard-throwing pitcher Victoria Galvan. Should it get postponed by rain, the game will be played on Friday at 2 p.m.

Robbinsville reached the run rule by sort of a drip drip — as opposed to a big guyser of runs. The Ravens scored two runs in the first, third and fifth innings before ending it in the sixth with four more.

In that sixth, Sara Motusesky blasted an RBI triple to deep center and Emily Rubino ended the game with a bloop two-out single to center.

For the game, Robbinsville collected 13 hits in all. Lead-off batter Chelsea Manto was 2-for-2 with two bunt singles and two walks, while Motusesky, Shea Walsh (two RBIs), Sophie Billings and Rubino also had two hits.

North Plainfield played fairly well in the field with just one error, but what it could not shut down was the Robbinsville running game. As a result, the Ravens stole and took extra bases pretty much at will.

Although it failed to score, North Plainfield did get in some good swings. The result was four hits against Raven junior Kate Hunter, who finished with eight strikeouts and never allowed more than one base runner in any inning. Hunter also got in on the fun at the plate with an RBI double in the fifth inning.

“I was happy with the way we hit the ball,’’ said North Plainfield coach Renee LaGala, whose team is one game out of first in the Skyland Conference’s Mountain Division and is having its first winning season since 2001. “I thought our pitcher (Victoria Kisling) did a nice job too.’’

So, why is the Somerset County school called the Canucks, which is a slang term for a French Canadian?

“I have no idea,’’ replied LaGala. “I really can’t answer that question.’’

Further inquiries did shed some light on the the school’s nickname.

“North Plainfield is known as Little Canada becaue it’s north of South Plainfield and Plainfield,’’ explained one of its fans. “Canucks is a term for someone north of the border.’’

How much sense that makes is open to debate, but it certainly sounds like as good an explanation as any.