Salem CC stuns Mercer in Region XIX softball tournament, then falls to Delaware Tech in winners bracket, but still alive for title
REGION XIX TOURNAMENT
At Mercer County CC
Friday’s games
Salem CC 6, Mercer CC 0
Delaware Tech 6, Lackawanna 5
Delaware Tech 9, Salem CC 3
Mercer CC 8, Lackawanna 0
Saturday’s games
Salem CC vs. Mercer CC, 10 a.m.
Salem-Mercer winner vs. Delaware Tech, noon
If necessary, 2 p.m.
By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News
WEST WINDSOR — For the past couple weeks the Salem CC softball team has been living by the motto ‘Schlay the day.’ The Mighty Oaks certainly ‘schlayed’ the first part of their day Friday and slayed a giant in the process.
In clearly their biggest win since the rebirth of the program and probably the biggest in its history, the fourth-seeded Oaks stunned top-seeded Mercer 6-0 in the opening round of the Region XIX Tournament.
They dropped their winners bracket game to Delaware Tech 9-3, but still have a chance to earn a spot in the district round against Region X. The Oaks (31-13) will have a rematch with Mercer (38-6) Saturday at 10 a.m. for a berth in the championship game where the winner and runnerup both advance to the next stage of the playoffs, but they’ll have to win three games to take the title.
“We’re in a good spot,” Salem coach Angel Rodriguez said. “We won a playoff game. That’s our story.
“We’re a new team in a position that hasn’t been here in our history and in program history and these three teams have a history of being here and knowing what it takes, having a good idea. We have nothing to lose. We’re going to keep battling and we’re going to keep working. We’re excited. We’re to come out here and whoever we have to face we’re looking to get the job.”
The Oaks stunned the field in the tournament opener. This was the same Mercer team that swept them with two run-rule shutouts and allowed just one hit 10 days ago, but the Oaks didn’t look intimidated in the least. They turned the tables by being aggressive at the plate and Caitlin LaGreca (and later Morgan Mecham) confounding the Vikings with her changeup from in the circle.
‘We were very confident from the start,’ said catcher Callie Rozak, whose three-run homer in the sixth inning was the gamebreaker in the win. ‘We put in a lot of hard work these last three days — live pitching, at bats, approaches, really getting the basics down so going in we have seen this, done this, let’s just put it in action.
‘It’s a big upset. We came in here and you’re counting us out already – a lot teams were – and we shut them out.”
Emilie Hamm’s sacrifice fly in the fourth inning gave the Oaks the lead. It remained a tight game until the sixth when the Oaks scored five runs. Rozak delivered the big blow in and Kiki Beukman hit a solo shot two batters later.
‘Coach Angel (Rodriguez) pulled me aside right before that and said we just need a hard hit, something to go through,’ Rozak said. ‘So I hit that one and I was like that felt good. Once we got that hit it really shut down their energy.’
LeGreca can’t remember pitching a better game. The Vikings are a team that likes to hit hard pitching and LaGreca kept them off-balance all day with her change, thanks in large part to lowering the pitch’s trajectory after studying film of the last time she faced them.
‘We really needed that win,’ LeGreca said. ‘We were voted the underdog and hungry dogs run faster.’
Where have we heard that before, Jason Kelce?
From her vantage point behind the plate, Rozak said LaGreca was ‘amazing’ and painted the outside corner ‘perfectly.’
‘It was definitely an exciting pitch, that’s for sure,’ Rozak said.
It was only the second time this season the Vikings had been shutout and the first time since they returned from their early-season trip to Myrtle Beach. The only hit they got was Abby Bell’s two-out single through the box in the second inning. They had six base runners and only two into scoring position. Third baseman Courtney Hoggard made two nice stabs at the bag to keep the gem alive.
“For us this meant a lot,” Rodriguez said. “This is something we’ve had our eyes on since we started the program: What are we doing to get to the playoffs and how can we win a playoff game.
“Last year we came up short, had the play-in, didn’t work out in our favor. Today just proves to us as coaches and players that we can get it done, that we are a good team, we deserve to be here and they earned that. Hashtag why not us.”
The Oaks were still riding the high of their opening-game win when they jumped out 2-0 in the first inning of their second game. But Del Tech took control with a six-run second inning that featured a three-run double, an RBI double and a two-run homer from consecutive batters.
“We did a better job than the first time around; we hit the ball hard, we just couldn’t find any open areas,” Rodriguez said.
The Oaks had five hits against Del Tech. Rozak hit her second homer of the day in the fourth inning and made the score 7-3.
Cover photo: The Salem CC softball players storm the field after upsetting top-seeded Mercer CC in the opening round of the Region XIX Tournament.
Riverview Sports News 