ND eases past Paul VI
LAWRENCE TWP. » The Paul VI softball team arrived at Notre Dame for a South Jersey Parochial A quarterfinal round game with an 18-2 record and a robust team batting average of .446.
As it turned out the Camden County team did do a pretty good job of putting the ball in play by striking out just 10 times against Rylee Michalak, but what it could not do was stop Notre Dame’s speed game.
As a result Notre Dame was able to roll to an 8-1 victory and into Thursday’s semifinals when it will play the winner of the game between Immaculata and the state’s top-ranked Donovan Catholic.
It’s become abundantly clear over the course of the season that Notre Dame sophomore Ella McColgan is one of the top players in the entire area. As such, it should as come as no surprise she led the way by reaching base all four times and scoring three of the runs.
“She’s special,” said Notre
Dame coach Marty Schafer of McColgan, who;s from Langhorne, Pa. “She’s got energy and she’s cerebral. And she’s the nicest kid in the world.”
McColgan started the first inning with a walk, stole second and eventually scored on a squeeze by Cara Mazzucco. No. 2 batter Helen Woloshyn, who is from the Council Rock School District, also scored in the first on a squeeze by Christa Andrusiewicz after also reaching on a walk. Emma Marchese got the third run home in the inning with a single.
Three more Irish runs followed in the second that started when McColgan walked again, and Woloshyn and Alayna Giampolo singled. From there, one run scored on a throwing error and then the Irish speed really came into play.
Paul IV appeared to have Woloshyn trapped between second and third, but when the throw to second got away Woloshyn was able to race home. And when the throw home was bad, Giampolo just kept on running and scored all the way from first base.
Notre Dame tacked on two more in the fourth when McColgan beat out a bunt single, Giampolo singled hard to center and Andrusiewicz stroked an RBI single.
Notre Dame had nine hits in all, including three by Marchese and two by by Giampolo. McColgan had just one hit, but walked twice, reached on a fielders’ choice and just generally created all kinds of havoc.
Paul VI was so desperate to stop her it employed a defensive set-up in which there was no right fielder and five infielders.
While all of this was going on, Michalak cranked up a four-hitter with the 10 strikeouts and was only reached for a run in the sixth when Paul VI strung two hits together.
Notre Dame also played a strong game in the field with no errors, which is an absolute must if it is going to continue to advance in this always rugged bracket.