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Kaneland puts on power show at Montini

Coach Mike Bukovsky and his top-seeded Montini softball team knew that the sectional seeds would not mean much when Kaneland took to the diamond on Tuesday.

He was well aware of the Knights' strong lineup and Wisconsin-bound pitcher Angela Morrow, and he expected a fight in the sectional semifinal played at Montini. But even so, the Broncos seemed a little shellshocked after the Knights pounded out 3 home runs and 14 hits while ending Montini's season with an 11-5 win.

"We knew that coming in," he said of Kaneland's talent level. "There were no favors with the draw so we were ready to go. You've got to give them a lot of credit. They hit the ball up and down."

After the game's first two hitters grounded out to short, the Knights' 3-4 hitters hit back-to-back home run rockets off Broncos starter Lauren Trojnar (20-4) for a quick 2-0 lead. Catcher Paige Kuefler sent a liner over the fence to left and then Meg Cohrs went the other way for her 10th home run of the season.

Kaneland, which will take on either St. Francis or Glenbard South in the sectional title game Saturday morning, scored four more times in the third while knocking Trojnar out and taking a 6-0 lead. Cohrs, who had 3 hits on the day, had an RBI double in the inning and Morgan Weber followed that up with a 2-run double.

"I can honestly say not one thing they did today was a surprise," said Bukovsky, whose team set a school record for wins while finishing 28-6 this spring. "We knew it was going to be a battle. In mind I knew we were going to have to score five runs or over to even be in the game and that's what it turned out to be."

Freshman Nicole Cuchran took over for Trojnar on the mound in the third and gave way to sophomore Naomi Alonzo in the seventh. But Kaneland just kept on hitting, scoring twice in the fourth and then capping the big day off with a 3-run homer by Mary Lynn Clausen in the seventh.

"With a couple homers we just set the stage right there," first-year Knights coach Peter Goff said of the first inning. "We had some great plays and timely hits by everybody today."

For the Broncos, Isabell Alexander and Serena Almodovar each singled and scored in the third off Morrow, who improved to 15-2. Emily Lezcano then singled home Amy Bukovsky to get the Broncos within 8-3 in the fifth inning, and then Cuchran and Lezcano each homered in the bottom of the seventh.

It was a tough way for Trojnar's stellar varsity tenure to end, but the school's all-time leader in wins was quick to point out the positives of her four varsity seasons, which saw her win 40 games the last two seasons.

"It's been a lot (wins)," she said. "I'm really proud of the team. We've come so far these last four years. Every year we've gone farther and farther. Montini softball has been a big part of my life and I'll always remember it. Overall I think this is the best season we've ever had, so yeah, so it was cool to end my senior year like that."

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