Victory wears well with Glenbard East
Glenbard East’s annual spring sports awards program is scheduled for tonight in Lombard.
For most of the athletes, it’s an occasion suited to nice clothes.
The Rams softball team won’t be dressed up, though, and they couldn’t be happier about it.
With the help of 3 home runs, Glenbard East defeated host St. Charles East 8-2 on Monday in Class 4A regional quarterfinal play. The Rams return to St. Charles today for a 4:30 p.m. game against St. Charles North, the No. 2 seed in the Schaumburg sectional.
And Glenbard East’s team will head right to the awards program afterward, savoring their ability to have extended their season one more day, and perhaps longer.
“We have some tradition going. We have played the play-in game and then the next day played on awards night,” Rams coach Valerie Pinzker said.
“We don’t want to be dressed up,” said senior Jenna Camp, one of the three home run hitters. “We want to be in dirty uniforms and full of Jimmy John’s — We stop for food if we win.”
Going into the contest, life of late had been good to Glenbard East, the 18th seed out of 21 teams in the Schaumburg sectional.
“Last week and a half, we’re 6-2. We’ve put it together at the right time,” Pinzker said of her nine-win team.
St. Charles East (15th seed, 16-16) got two routine outs in the top of the first before Rams third baseman Michaela Stranski pounded a second pitch over the center-field fence with room to spare to make it 1-0.
Saints coach Kelly Horan said Stranski’s shot hurt, but certainly wasn’t a knockout punch.
“Our kids responded. But give Glenbard East credit. They hit the heck out of the ball and their pitcher (Kara Tadda) looked better than she did on film,” she said.
The Saints were able to get runners on base in three of the next four innings after that first home run.
The Rams’ Megan Shannon made it 2-0 in the third with a homer that landed close to where Stranski’s did, over the center-field fence. The following inning, Alissa Mogavero reached on an infield hit and scored on a fielding error.
The fifth inning saw Glenbard East break the game open with a 3-run effort. Shannon singled to left and scored on a fielding effort. Later, Catherine Priebe’s two-out double to the left-field fence plated Stranski and Alissa Mogavero.
Glenbard East wasn’t done as Camp hit a 2-run homer in the sixth, again with two outs, with Mary Donahue also scoring after she singled.
The three Ram home run hitters, Camp, Shannon and Stranski, are four-year varsity players.
The Saints were able to get on the scoreboard with a 2-run effort in their half of the sixth. Sarah Collalti was walked in after reaching on an infield hit and Allison Hall’s sacrifice fly plated Casey Basic after she reached on a base hit.
For the Saints, the curtain comes down on the season with high hopes for 2012.
“I’m excited. Our freshmen and sophomores got a lot of good experience,” Horan said.
Glenbard East left the field with smiles on their faces, knowing they will get to play on a special day for them and that the playoffs are indeed a new season, with new possibilities.
“This is great,” Shannon said.