The Oneida Daily Dispatch (Oneida, NY)
Oneida girls face off against Bethlehem
After rallying from a 5-2deficit, the two teams eventually headed into extra innings to determine the winner.
WHITESBORO, N.Y. » In her first start at the varsity level, Oneida junior Courtney Schneider delivered in a big way for Mike Curro’s Oneida softball side.
After Oneida had rallied froma 5-2 deficit to briefly take the lead in the sixth inning of Saturday’s contest, opposing Bethlehem scratched a run across in the top of the seventh to tie the game at 6-6 and force extra innings.
With two outs and a runner on second in the bottom of the eighth, Schneider stepped to the plate and ripped a walk-off single to score Alyssa Gienger and secure the 7-6 win.
“To see Courtney Schneider, in her first varsity game, have thebig hit on a ball to the right side, a line drive, that’s really exciting,” Curro said.
For Schneider, it was a bit more nerve-wracking.
“I was very determined to get a hit because I wanted to win it for the team,” she said. “I was very nervous too, but I was breathing and making sure I got the hit.”
Once she saw Gienger cross home plate, it was all elation.
“I was so excited. I couldn’t believe that I had gotten the last run in,” Schneider added.
Kyra Shlotzhauer earned the win for Oneida in eight innings of work and 10 strikeouts.
“Really good effort,” Curro said of the win. “I thought Kyra pitched wonderfully well. We just have to get better with the defensive lapses, but our ability to answer back is great.”
Sydney Lusher went 1-of-3 from the plate and drove in three runs and Lauren Skibitski added a pair
of RBI on 1-of-3 hitting.
Bethlehem starter Olivia Miranda took the loss.
Schneider’s clutch piece of hitting capped an exciting comeback for Oneida. After a scoreless first couple of innings, Bethlehem took the first lead of the game in the top of the third frame on an Aurora LaGace double that scored Sophia DeFrancesco, who had reached on an error. After Julia Ripinski reached via an error, Claire Boegel slapped a two-RBI single to score LaGace and Ripinski for a 3-0 Bethlehem lead.
Oneida answered right back in the bottom half of the inning. Gienger worked a walk, followed by an infield single from Abby Carroll. Two batters later, Lauren Skibitski drew a walk to load the bases with one out before Kaylin Curro drew a bases-loaded walk to put a run across for Oneida. Sydney Lusher plated Oneida’s second run of the contest to pull her team within one, but Miranda was able to limit the damage to two runs and escape the inning with a 3-2 Bethlehem lead.
The Eagles scored Sophia DeFrancesco in the fourth to push the lead back to 4-2, taking advantage of a couple of Oneida miscues in the field.
Miranda set Oneida down in order in the bottom of the fourth, and Megan O’Keefe took Shlotzhauer deep in the top of the fifth for a solo homer and a 5-2 lead.
Oneida refused to go away however, and in the second half of the fifth inning, Lusher roped a two RBI double to score Schneider and Curro to pull Oneida back within a run at 5-4.
As the Oneida bats began to heat up, Shlotzhauer grew stronger in the circle, working her changeup to keep Bethlehem batters off balance and preserve the Oneida lead heading into the bottom of the sixth.
“At the end, she was even more precise than what she was throwing in the beginning,” Curro said of his starter.
Emily Marshall and Gienger led off the inning with back-to-back singles, taking third and second re- spectively on a sacrifice bunt by Carroll. Then, after slicing two pitches just foul down the right field line, Skibitksi straightened it out for a pair of RBI and a 6-5Oneida lead.
Bethlehem spoiled the comeback by scoring Abby Campbell to force extras. Shlotzhauer retired three in a rowin the top of the eighth to preserve the tie and set Oneida and Schneider up for the walk-off win.
“Defensively, we have to get a little bit stronger. Our MO right now as a team is we have a couple of errors followed by a hit or a walk in there that allows the other team to score. Our ability to answer back has been great all year long,” Curro said. “Then, once again we did that. I just kept reminding them, ‘We’re not out of it. We’re not out of it.’ Then to have Courtney Schneider, who has not played a lot this year, come in and get a cou- ple of clutch hits for us, that’s really exciting to see.. .We did very well. That’s a good team.”