Plainfield South made a little history Saturday thanks to an intrepid mix of opportunistic hitters dubbed the “Two-Out Trio.”
Alexis Alvarez, Gaby Liberatore and Mary Giancarlo all came through with two-out RBIs in leading Plainfield South to a 3-2 victory over Naperville Central in the Class 4A sectional title game at Bolingbrook.
The Cougars (26-8) became the first Plainfield softball team to win a sectional title and will face Lake Park (32-4) in Monday’s supersectional at Benedictine University in Lisle.
“I was like, ‘Thank you, Jesus!'” Alvarez said after her single in the fourth inning drove in Jackie Frey, who had led off with a triple.
“I was all jittery and nervous, but I kept thinking I had to get the run in,” said Liberatore, who followed Alvarez with a single that brought home winning pitcher Alyssa Schrader.
An inning later, Frey coaxed a two-out walk, and up stepped Giancarlo.
“When I came to the plate, I told myself, ‘Hit that big yellow thing that’s coming at your head,'” Giancarlo said about the two-out double that drove in the winning run. “Just keep it simple.”
Naperville Central (24-7) managed just one hit off Schrader but took advantage of a two-out, two-run error by Cougars center fielder Kendall Weber in the first inning to take a 2-0 lead.
Plainfield South benefited from sparkling defense by Northern Illinois-bound shortstop Krista Matsui, including a diving stop that took a hit away from Natalie Wunderlich.
— Bob Sakamoto
Lake Park 4, West Chicago 2 (4A): At Schaumburg, Alexis Munaco’s three-run homer in the bottom of the third erased a 2-0 Lake Park deficit. The Lancers’ Missy Mazur settled down after allowing two first-inning runs and struck out 10.
Barrington 10, Carmel 3 (4A): The host Fillies broke open a close game with a six-run fourth inning and advance to face Crystal Lake South in Monday’s NIU supersectional. Junior Kim Cygan tossed a four-hitter with nine strikeouts and was 2-for-3 with a double and two RBIs. Shea Crowley drove in Carmel’s runs with two home runs.
Oak Park 10, Queen of Peace 3 (4A): At Morton, Oak Park used a five-run first inning to earn a berth against New Trier in Monday’s Loyola supersectional. Maggie Paoli (three runs) and Carolyn Pluta (three RBIs) paced the Huskies. Jamie Monreal had three hits for Queen of Peace.
Glenbard South 1, Riverside-Brookfield 0 (3A): Jill Trzaska threw a four-hitter and had 10 strikeouts for the host Raiders, who will play supersectional host to Oak Forest on Monday. Amanda Straka singled and scored the only run of the game.
Class 1A/2A finals: Cobden defeated Alexis United 5-2 for the 1A title. Downs Tri-Valley took third place with a 2-1 win over Lebanon. In 2A, Carterville won the championship with a 13-2 win over Stanford Olympia. Morrison edged Piasa Southwestern 3-2 for third place.
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