Everything from a big cake to numbers spray-painted in foul territory in front of the dugout was used to honor the Baldwinsville softball team’s six seniors prior to last Monday’s clash with Cicero-North Syracuse.
A greater honor, though, was completing a regular-season sweep of the Northstars, which the Bees did thanks to Keeanna Wolcik’s powerful pitching and keen batting eye, each of which was valuable in a 1-0 victory.
Having prevailed, 4-1, at Gillette Road on April 21, B’ville found the rematch tougher, unable to take advantage of chances in each of the first four innings against C-NS pitcher Ariana Corasaniti. Wolcik, meanwhile, mowed down C-NS hitters and, by the fifth, had accumulated 13 strikeouts.
In the bottom of the fifth, the Bees got back-to-back singles before Sarah Lalla singled to load the bases with two out. Wolcik had the power to get as many as four runs on the board with one swing, but she patiently worked a walk to score Haley Parker before Emma Bernet grounded out.
Charged with that slim lead, Wolcik allowed a bunt single to Janelle Walters in the top of the sixth. Walters moved to third with two outs, but then Ally Thompson grounded out to end the threat. A seventh-innning Sam Shalcross single was wasted when Wolcik’s 15th K ended the game.
B’ville hosted Auburn two days later, and proved far more productive at the plate in a 13-0 shutout of the Maroons where it scored three times in the first inning and then broke it open with six runs in the bottom of the fourth.
Bernet didn’t’ need much run support, as she held Auburn to two hits while striking out five. In fact, Bernet got more hits (three) at the plate than the opposition, one of them a home run as she finished with four RBIs.
Wolcik also had three hits, joining Kaycee Hawk, Brooke Carlisle and Kendra Collings as they drove in two runs apiece. Kayla Young also had an RBI as Hawk led the Bees by scoring three runs.
A non-league game against defending Section III Class B champion Solvay on Monday afternoon was one of the last tests B’ville would face before finding out this Sunday about the Section III Class AA playoff pairings.
