Article published May 25, 2007
CGA blanks Cougars in final
Emma Clark scores the winning run in the sixth inning.
Tribune photos/Gene Kaiser
AL LESAR
Tribune Staff Writer
LAKEVILLE -- With complete confidence, Culver Girls Academy softball coach Jen Mascari can finally say her pitcher has finally fit in with the rest of the team.
Thursday's 1-0 Class 3-A sectional championship win over New Prairie sealed the deal.
CGA's Holly Johnson tossed her third straight tournament shutout and the 19-6 Eagles captured their third consecutive 1-0 victory to advance to the Twin Lakes Regional on June 2.
For Johnson, a junior at the academy, it was just another chapter in the whirlwind saga she's authored since January.
The lefthanded Johnson, who threw 31 shutout innings this week, lives in New York. Her aunt works at Culver Academies. She called it a "last-minute decision" in the winter to pack up and start school at CGA in January.
"There were so many
opportunities (academically) for me (at CGA)," Johnson said.
"And it didn't hurt that they just lost their pitcher (Jackie
Lawrence, who graduated and played for the University of Tulsa this
spring)."
"She's had a pretty hard adjustment," Mascari said of Johnson.
"It's taken a while, but she looks pretty comfortable now."
Thursday, it was the 23-7 Cougars who seemed out of their element.
Like she has been in wins over St. Joseph's (17 innings, 30 strikeouts)
and Marian, Johnson was dominating. New Prairie's only hit was Jessie
Strauch's second-inning ground ball to shortstop Teresa Greppi that
Strauch legged out. A double play wiped out that runner, but Johnson
committed an error later so she ended up facing one batter over the
minimum, 22. She had eight strikeouts.
"From watching (the St. Joe game), we learned to lay off her high
stuff," New Prairie coach Tim Scott said. "We had trouble
putting the ball in play. With high school kids, it comes down to one
mental lapse being the difference in a game like this."Scott's team
made that lapse in the sixth.
The inning opened with a walk to CGA's Emma Clark. Greppi sacrificed her
to second. Johnson hit a routine grounder to short that New Prairie's Tori
Cuson bobbled, putting runners at first and second with one out. A popup
to Cuson was the second out. Alex Harper hit another easy grounder to
Cuson that she fielded cleanly. With plenty of time, Cuson's throw was low
and it squirted away from first baseman Britt Curless. Clark barely
hesitated at third and scored easily. Corinne Henning, running for
Johnson, was thrown out at third but the damage was done.
"Emma's one of our fastest runners, so we were going to send her all
the way," Mascari said. "At that point, we were going to give it
a try."
The play was reminiscent of the one that accounted for the only run
against St. Joe.New Prairie pitcher Olivia Findley was effective. She gave
up two hits -- a double and a single by Kylie Hermanson --and struck out
three.
"People point to the defensive (mistakes), but you've still gotta
score," Scott said. "There were four solid teams in this
tournament and (CGA) went through three of them. You've gotta give 'em
credit."
| New Prairie | 000 | 000 | 0-0 1 2 |
| CGA | 000 | 001 | x-1 2 1 |
Oliva Findley (L) and Libby Romstadt; Holly Johnson (W) and Megan Hicks.2B: Kylie Hermanson (CGA)
Umpires: Anne Griffith, plate; Brent Beeber, bases.
Culver Girls Academy players hoist the sectional trophy.