Saturday, June 4, 2011

By Rich Barton
NJS.com Staff Writer

Kayla Lombardo had two hits, two RBI and a run scored for Pequannock, which grabbed the North 1, Group 2 state sectional title with an 8-2 win over Ramsey on Friday afternoon.

PEQUANNOCK – Throughout this long softball season every team in New Jersey has had its share of ups and downs; all except one. A scoreless tie against the state’s No. 2 ranked team, St. John Vianney, is the only blemish on Pequannock’s ledger this season. In fact, it has rarely even been tested this season in outscoring its opponents by an eye-popping 183-7 margin heading into Friday’s section final.

At best, Ramsey had a puncher’s chance against the best team in New Jersey and the Rams did what few teams could say they have this season. The Rams gave Pequannock a scare before junior Dana Nielsen worked her way out of trouble and the Panthers’ bats took care of the rest.

Down 2-0 in the top of fourth, Ramsey had two runners in scoring position with one out. Nielsen bore down and got a pop-up on a bunt attempt and a strikeout to end the inning. On the very next pitch in the bottom half of the frame, Ali Fitchler launched a homer and top-seeded Pequannock never looked back in adding another title to its resume with an 8-2 win in the North 1, Group 2 final at Pequannock High School.

“We knew Ramsey was going to be a tough team and they were just that,” said Pequannock head coach Maryann Goodwin. “We haven’t been in many pressure situations this season, so it was good for us to be in a few of them. I thought Dana (Nielsen) was confident in the circle and as a team, we hit the ball pretty well all game.”

Lexi Knief didn't get the call on this play in the third inning, but the Ramsey junior did make her mark withtwo hits, two RBI, and a stolen base.

Pequannock wasted no time in grabbing the lead. Table setter Jaime O’Rourke reached on an error to lead off the game and came around to score on a double to left by Kayla Lombardo for a quick 1-0 advantage.

The duo was at it again in the third inning with the help of a missed call at second base. O’Rourke led off with a single to left. Then, on a ground ball to second by Ally Thomas, Ramsey second baseman Danielle Cirilli flipped to Lexi Knief, who made a barehanded play on the bag at second base. The throw just beat O’Rourke, but she was called safe. Lombardo made it hurt three pitches later by lining a single to plate O’Rourke for a 2-0 lead.

Ramsey right-hander Ally Mende was able to squirm her way out of a bases-loaded, no-out jam in the third and her team nearly rallied around her in the Rams’ next at-bat. Jenn Ball walked and, with nobody covering third base, alertly advanced and got to the bag in time on a perfectly placed bunt from Morgan Bishop. Bishop then took second on defensive indifference to put the tying run just 120 feet from home with one out.

Nielsen is considered one of the state’s top pitchers and with good reason. She was able to get a  pop-up on a bunt, then a strike out to retire the side. Fitchler then took the first pitch she saw in the top of the fourth just over the fence in right field for a solo shot. Thomas and Nielsen added RBI singles later in the inning to put the Panthers ahead, 5-0.

Dana Nielsen allowing six hits with one walk and nine K’s in pickup up the win for Pequannock.

“We had to get a run across in the fourth and give Nielsen credit for making some great pitches to get out of trouble,” said Ramsey head coach Chris Caserta. “Pequannock is where they are because they have it all. Great pitching, great defense, they can hit, they can bunt, and they do all the little things and the intangibles that you need to do to win championships. I thought we gave it everything we had and you have to be a pretty good team just to get to this point. But you have to play close to perfect in order to beat a team like this and we didn’t do that.”

Ramsey did make another charge in the fifth and became the first team to score a run off of Nielsen in the state tournament. After a bunt single and an error Knief, the Penn State-bound junior, roped a double into the left-center field gap to bring home Rhiannon Maglio and Nicole Gravalis to cut the lead to 5-2. Knief then stole third with one out, but was stranded there as Nielsen got some help from her defense. After a strikeout, senior second baseman Raquel Lamanna made a leaping over-the-shoulder catch off the bat of Ball to save a run and end the inning.

The Panthers put the game away in the sixth by tacking on three more runs despite just having one hit, a leadoff single by Deanna Devito.

Lombardo was the offense star by reaching in all four of her plate appearances with two hits, two RBI and a run scored for Pequannock (24-0-1). Nielsen got touched up a little more than she is accustomed to, allowing six hits with one walk and nine K’s. But a closer look would reveal that only three batted balls off of the Ramsey bats reached the outfield.

Jenn Ball and Ramsey finished a successful season with a 21-6 record.

Knief had two hits, two RBI, and a stolen base for Ramsey, which concluded its season with a 21-6 record. Maglio also had two hits while Bishop and Melissa Gwon each had one.

The only thing left was the celebration. After consecutive groundouts to end the game, the Panthers poured onto the field a year after being on the losing side in the North 1, Group 2 section final, a 1-0 loss to eventual Group 2 state champ Indian Hills, which went on to finish the season as the No. 1 ranked team in New Jersey.

This season, the senior-laden Panthers feel this is their time. They have just two steps remaining to achieve that goal, the first of which comes Tuesday against upstart Caldwell, who came all the way from the No. 8 seed to win the North 2, Group 2 title. A win there would bring them back down to Toms River, where the current Pequannock seniors won the Group 2 title as sophomores.

“Winning a title of any kind is not easy to do, but to win a Group 2 state title is always the toughest,” added Goodwin. “We’ve worked hard and been fortunate to be part of some championships over the years, but you also have to stay humble because it can slip away from you at any time and before you blink, your season is over.

“This team has nine seniors who have dedicated themselves along with the other girls towards winning the Group 2 title as the gold standard. We know it doesn’t get any better than hoisting that trophy down in Toms River and that’s what we’ve been shooting for all year. Today’s win over a real solid team like Ramsey puts us a little closer to where we want to be when it’s all said and done.”

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