Improving Aurora Central edges Rosary
What a difference a year makes for the Aurora Central Catholic softball team.
A year ago when the Chargers played their rival Rosary they made 10 errors.
Errors continued to be a problem for Aurora Central early this season but the Chargers are starting to settle down. They didn't make a single error against the visiting Royals Tuesday while capitalizing on a Rosary mistake for two unearned runs that were the difference in a 2-1 victory.
"Our defense behind me was real strong," winning pitcher Paige Miller said. "Early in the season it was giving up runs on errors after errors."
Miller, who no-hit Timothy Christian on Monday, struck out eight while walking two and allowing 4 hits to improve to 4-3.
Her catcher Mary Wileman made one of the better plays in Tuesday's win when she pounced on a Ries McCue bunt and threw her out on a bang-bang play at first base.
"Our defense has been ugly and the girls will own up to it," Chargers coach Tom Babyar said. "The strikeouts helped the defense today and really we didn't have to make too many tough plays. Give Paige credit. She kept the ball down."
Miller set Rosary (1-4, 1-1) down in order the first three innings, striking out the side in the second.
Aurora Central Catholic (6-4, 1-0) left 9 runners on base in the game. The Chargers scored their only runs in the third inning, a rally started when Maddie Reinecke reached on an infield error.
Gabi Alfaro lined a single to right and Reinecke took third, the Chargers getting a break when the Royals couldn't come up with a strong throw from right field that would have got Reinecke.
After Rosary starter Emma Molenhouse (4 innings, 3 hits, 5 strikeouts, 3 walks, 0 earned runs) got Miller to pop up to short, Andrea Bieritz lined a clutch 2-out single to right-center to score Reinecke and Alfaro.
"Sometimes it comes down to one play," Rosary coach Megan Tracey said. "We had a runner dead at third and we missed that. Sometimes we have a hard time thinking ahead such as when they have slappers up pulling in a little bit. But we're still making improvements. We'll be all right."
After Miller retired the first 10 hitters, Rosary adjusted and had better at-bats the second and third time through the order. The Royals got on the board in the fourth when Anna VanGundy singled, stole second, took third on Sarah Willman's groundout and scored on Molenhouse's single to center.
Rosary had a chance to take the lead in the sixth on 2-out singles by Willman and Molenhouse, then a walk to Aubrey Fisher to load the bases before Miller escaped the jam with a strikeout.
The junior then finished her complete game with a 1-2-3 seventh.
"They started getting ahold of the inside pitch and I had to start mixing it up a little more," Miller said. "Our bats are coming along now. We have to keep our errors lower. That's the big thing on our team."
Molenhouse was the only player on either team with 2 hits.
"It was very uncharacteristic to have (8) strikeouts," Tracey said. "We usually put the ball in play very well. It was just an off-day for us offensively."