Lady Mikes roll into Class A semifinals
Ed Cope
Carmichaels’ Amanda Brown puts the ball in play against Jeannette during Monday’s game at Baldwin High School. The Lady Mikes beat the Lady Jayhawks, 15-0.
Carmichaels' catcher Lindsey Osborne (1) gives winning pitcher Erica Burns a congratulatory hug after Carmichaels defeated Jeannette, 15-0, at Baldwin High School Monday.
Carmichaels' Emma Lowry (24) is tagged out by Jeannette shortstop Delaney Cortazzo Monday during a game at Baldwin High School.
WHITEHALL — If the Carmichaels girls softball team is on a mission, it showed in Monday’s 15-0 WPIAL Class A quarterfinal win over Jeannette at Baldwin High School.
Winning pitcher Erica Burns faced just 14 batters and surrendered only one hit, a solid fourth-inning double by Delaney Cortazzo.
At the plate, the Lady Mikes pounded out 11 hits and scored four runs in the first inning, eight runs in the third and three runs in the fourth to invoke the 15-run mercy rule.
Carmichaels coach Dave Briggs said, “We did everything well. We’d like to get back to California University (for the championship game), especially after the disappointment of last year (a 3-2 title game loss to Chartiers-Houston).”
Briggs said Burns, “was on today. Her off-speed pitch was working and when she mixes it up, her fastball is pretty effective.”
Batting as the visiting team, Carmichaels (20-2) jumped ahead right away when Caroline Cree singled and scored on a double by Morgan Berardi. Regina Menhart singled to drive in Berardi, Lindsey Osborne was safe on an error and Amanda Brown walked to load the bases.
Pinch-runner Katie Mays scored on a ground out by Danielle McClellan and Osborne scored on an error on a ball hit by Emma Lowry.
Burns struck out five of the first seven Jeannette batters and allowed just one base runner when she hit Monica Carl with a pitch in the first inning.
The Lady Mikes sent 12 batters to the plate in the third inning, highlighted by McClellan’s single that drove in Berardi and Osborne, and RBI singles by Mia Virgilli, Berardi, and Menhart.
A pair of Jeannette errors and an RBI single by Cree built the lead to 15-0 in the fourth.
Burns was the only Carmichaels player not to have a part in the offense, but not for lack of effort. She had three solid hits to the outfield that were all tracked down.
Burns struck out eight of 11 batters before Cortazzo’s line drive to left field hit five feet in fair territory for a double in the fourth.
Cortazzo is the daughter of Jeannette coach Dee Cortazzo, who was proud of her daughter’s hit.
“I’m proud of our team,” Cortazzo added. “We have only been in the playoffs twice, in 2010 and 2013, and this year we had our first playoff win. We played a really good team and they kicked our butts.”
Carmichaels now meets Burgettstown, a 2-1 winner over South Side Beaver, for Wednesday’s semifinal game at a site and time to be determined.