RAVEN GOOD TIME
Robbinsville makes it look easy with MCT softball 3-peat
EWING» Things simply could not haveworked out any better for the Robbinsville softball team in the Mercer County Tournament championship game.
For openers, Robbinsville captured the MCT for the third year in a row with an almost routine 4-1 victory over Steinert at Armstrong Park on Thursday afternoon.
Itwas an impressive third time the Ravens (22-1) were able to beat Steinert (19-5) in the same season. It also marked the first time in 15 years a team was able to three-peat at theMCT.
Also of importance was the fact senior ace Kate Hunter did not have to work very hard to shut down the Spartans with a five-hitter and five strikeouts. Hunter threw just 92 pitches, which was in stark contrast to the 126 Kaylee Whittaker threw for Steinert.
Both teams are right back in action Friday afternoon in the state tournament. Defending state championRobbinsville hostsMatawan (195) and a Steinert team that was a state runner-up last year is at top-seeded Burlington Township (19-1).
“I didn’t feel like I had to throw a lot of pitches,” said Hunter. “I feel good.”
This stood in stark contrast to how she felt before the game after getting beaned in the head in a freak batting practice accident in her school’s batting cage.
“It was like oh my God I don’t want a concussion,” said Hunter. “I knew I just had to shake it off.”
She did that and more as it was Steinert coming away with a headache after rarely threatening and only getting on the board with two outs in the seventh when Taylor Hawkes doubled afterNicole Cerasi singled.
The run ended a string of 16 straight innings in which Steinert had not been able to score against the Ravens.
By that point Robbinsville had more than enough runs it would need, in large part due to the havoc created by leadoff batter and tournament Most Valuable Player
ChelseaManto.
Manto singled to start the bottom of the first and stole second, butWhittaker (eight strikeouts) was able to get out of that jamwith a basesloaded strikeout.
The Steinert junior was not as fortunate in the third when Manto again led off with a single, stole second and raced home on a single to center by SheaWalsh. The Ravens added a second run in the inning on bloop singles by Olivia Moser and Hunter.
In addition to a couple of nice plays at shortstop and beating the runner to third for a force out on a grounder to third baseman Sophie Billings, Manto later collected her third hit and third stolen base. In the meantime, her team had been able to build up the lead to 4-0 with two more runs in the fifth.
This inning startedwith a
double to center by Allie Taylor. Up stepped Moser, who crushed a two-run homer well over the left field fence to blow the game wide open.
“We knew we had to play well,” said Manto when asked about beating Steinert for the third time in one season. “IplaywithKaylee in the summer, so we do have a little friendly competition going.”
Themuch bigger prize for both teams, of course, is the state tournament.
As such, Steinert needs to come out Friday mad. As for Robbinsville, well, it just needs to keep on what it’s been doing behind a pitcher who is working on a remarkable string of seven straight state tournament shutouts.
Steinert (19-5) 000 000 1— 1 5 0 Robbinsville (22-1) 002 020 x— 4 10 0
WP-Hunter. LP-Whittaker. 2B-Hawkes (S), Taylor. HR-Moser (R). RBIs: S-Hawkes. R-Walsh, Moser 2, Hunter.