The top of the Loyola softball team’s order — which Ramblers coach Michelle Farrell-Fink described as a team strength — produced at the plate in the bottom of the seventh inning against New Trier.
Down a run and down to their final three outs on Monday, May 18, the Ramblers pushed two runs across to complete a 5-4 comeback win at Loyola’s Munz Campus in Glenview. Freshman Grace Guercio scored the game-winning run on senior Caitlin Haughey’s sacrifice fly to center field.
“We’ve been scoring a lot of runs, but we also are giving up a lot of runs,” said Farrell-Fink, whose team beat Regina 13-9 on Saturday, May 16, in the final game of the GCAC Red tournament. “Offense will be a key thing for us in the playoffs. It’s something [we] will rely on.”
Before Haughey’s heroics, freshman and leadoff hitter Nora Conway started Loyola’s half of the seventh with a triple to right field. She scored the tying run on Guercio’s single. Sophomore Avery Yalowitz then followed with a single. After an out by sophomore Olivia Rempe, Haughey delivered the deep fly ball.
“We know we can count on the top of the order,” said Conway, who plays center field. “We were confident we could win the game. My job was to get on base any way I could.”
Loyola’s first five hitters went a combined 6-for-17 with two walks. They drove in all five runs. Conway had two hits, and Haughey finished with three RBIs.
Despite their youth, Conway, Guercio and Yalowitz — recent all-conference selections — have been mainstays at the top of the order this spring, while Rempe is relatively new to the cleanup position. She had a single and scored a run in the first inning.
“It was good to see us hit like that in the seventh,” said Farrell-Fink, whose club improved to 15-10 with two games to go in the regular season. “It was a perfect time to do that because we want to be peaking by the playoffs.”
The Ramblers recently earned the eighth seed in the Class 4A Glenbrook South Sectional. They open the playoffs on Wednesday, May 27, against 11th-seeded Palatine in the Palatine Regional semifinals.
“This can be really good momentum, and it’s always nice to beat a rival,” Conway said.
New Trier notes
* The Trevians surrendered three runs in the first inning and spent the rest of the game digging out of the hole. They took the lead in the top of the seventh with three runs, including a solo home run from senior Dana Dolinko, who took the loss in the circle.
* New Trier is the sixth seed at the Glenbrook South Sectional. The Trevians play 12th-seeded Glenbrook South on Wednesday, May 27, in the Zion-Benton Regional semifinals.
More Top Picks Best Chew Necklaces For Sensory Needs
This story has been revised to reflect the following correction:
The article misstated which class the Glenbrook South Sectional is in. It is in Class 4A, not 3A.
Twitter: @harnesspreps