Bright sunshine and blue skies were supposed to clear the way for the Bishop Ludden softball team on Monday as it tried to dethrone South Lewis in a Section III Class C final at the Gillette Road complex in Cicero split in two by wild weather in the middle.
But the Gaelic Knights never could get started again – and the Falcons, showing its experience in big-game setting, would move in front and prevail, 5-2, to earn its second consecutive sectional title.
It all had begun back on Saturday, Ludden trying to build upon the Class C-2 title it won over Fabius-Pompey 3-2, and appearing to succeed in that venture in the early going.
In the bottom of the second inning, Beth Jerome led off with a single. After a force play put Catie Graf on first, Graf stole second, then came home when Kristen Ryan singled, continuing her hot streak (she had all three RBIs agaisnt Fabius-Pompey).
That margin doubled to 2-0 in the third when, with two outs, Grace Rooney and stole second before Kayla Kibling’s single allowed Rooney to score.
Korey Kibling cruised along until the top of the fourth, when South Lewis awoke with a pair of walks. Following a sacrifice bunt, Mackenzie Colwell hit a grounder up the middle that, when mishandled, allowed both runs to score for a 2-2 tie.
Just as that inning ended, thunder was heard in the sky, and the teams went off the field. As they were set to return a half-hour later, heavy rain hit, forming puddles on the Gillette diamonds.
When the rain wouldn’t go away, officials decided to stop the game and, with Sunday’s weather worse, move it until Monday, when it cleared up.
South Lewis didn’t take long to pounce upon the game’s resumption. In the top of the fifth, with two runners on and two out, Jenna Kraeger’s single scored Morgan Baslow with the go-ahead run.
Yet it was the sixth inning that really decided matters. the Falcons expanded on its 3-2 lead as it loaded the bases with two walks and a Ludden error. Baslow’s short grounder brought home one run, and with two out Korey Kibling hit Ashley Szewil, making it 5-2.
The Gaelic Knights tried to get it back in the bottom of the sixth. Rooney singled, while Kayla Kibling and Kim Balla both walked to load the bases with one out.
Graf could only manage a pop-up, though, and Ryan belted a ball to center field – where Jennifer Strigle made a running catch to save at least two runs. It proved to be Ludden’s last real threat.
A memorable season concluded at 21-3, with Ludden seeing four seniors – Ryan, Jerome, Balla and Graf – off to graduation. Rooney, Jessica Sciore, Meaghan McGrath and the Kibling sisters form a formidable core of returning players for 2011.
