St. Charles E. closes door on Geneva

Coming off the bench to contribute is not an easy thing to do for any athlete.

Coming off the bench to make a significant contribution on a raw, windy, bone-chilling Chicagoland spring afternoon is no small task, either.

After spending the first innings in the dugout, St. Charles East sophomore pitcher Haley Beno was brought into the game with the Saints clinging to a 7-4 lead over host Geneva in Upstate Eight Conference River softball action Friday.

Kelly Gordon had just delivered a 2-run single on a 3-2 offering from Saints senior Shannon Pedersen (6-3), as the Vikings threatened to complete a furious rally from a 6-0 deficit.

While Beno did allow a 2-out, sixth-inning RBI double off the bat of Taylor Medernach that enabled the Vikings (7-9, 2-7) to draw within 6-4, she got out of the jam with a strikeout before working a scoreless seventh to help preserve the Saints’ 7-4 triumph.

“Beno coming in and shutting them down was great,” said Saints coach Kelly Horan. “Coming off the bench cold is probably the most difficult thing to do and she mentally prepared herself for it.”

Beno, who seemed unflustered with the weather conditions, deflected the credit back to her teammates after recording the save.

“It wasn’t that bad,” she said. “I was in it the whole game so I was ready. I just tried to throw strikes, hit my spots and get them out. I had good defense behind me and that helped.”

The Saints (10-8, 4-5) jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first on the strength of back-to-back-to-back, 2-out hits from Olivia Lorenzini (double), Casey Basic (RBI single), and Kate Peterburs (RBI double).

“That really set us up,” said Horan. “Three straight hits — that was fantastic.”

In the fourth, the Saints added more runs, benefiting from Sarah Collalti’s 2-run double, Lexi Perez’s RBI fielder’s choice, and a pair of Viking throwing errors.

“I think our offense did a nice job of putting the pressure on,” said Horan, who had left-handed hitters (Perez, Collalti, Lorenzini, and Tess Hupe) in her starting lineup. “That makes it easier for a defense to make mistakes.”

Falling behind 6-0 midway through the game wasn’t what Geneva coach Greg Dierks envisioned.

“We just had too slow of a start today,” said Dierks. “They came out and played better than us clearly right out of the blocks. We had a couple chances in the (fourth) inning there to get off the field a little faster than we did. Instead of being (down) 6-0, even if it’s 4-0, then we catch them.

“The first time through the order, we just weren’t disciplined enough at the plate to put the ball in play the way we needed it to be,” said Dierks. “Eventually we were able to make the adjustment but there’s no reason we can’t have that same approach in the first inning.”

Geneva got on the board in the fourth on Amanda Ebert’s RBI single. Anna Geary, Elena Wright, and Gordon each had a pair of hits for the Vikings, who committed 4 errors.

“In all facets of the game right now, we’re still a little too inconsistent,” said Dierks.

The Saints added an insurance run in the seventh, as singles from pinch-hitter Shelby Palomares, Leah Valesh, and Cassie Boles (2-for-3) loaded the bases to set up Hupe’s RBI fielder’s choice.

“It was a big add-on run,” said Horan. “That’s a great sign from the bench that they are mentally preparing themselves for the opportunity.”