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First-ever homer lifts South County
South County senior Paulina Gregorowicz didn't allow a single home run last season, as the right-handed hurler went 11-2 with 102 strikeouts and a 0.70 ERA.
And on Friday night at windy Ossian Hall Park near Annandale High School, Gregorowicz hit the first homer that she can remember ... ever.
“It was the first one in my life,” said Gregorowicz, whose solo shot down the left field line solidified a 3-0 win for the South County softball team. “I've had [homers] where there weren't fences, but that doesn't really count.”
A hint of uncertainty might've clouded her home run, but there was little evidence to suggest that Gregorowicz's pitching performance was anything less than dominating.
Gregorowicz induced three groundouts on eight pitches in the bottom of the first, and she proceeded to strike out the side -- needing only 10 pitches in the bottom half of the second.
Annandale sophomore Sabrina Hassan recorded the only hit for the Atoms in the bottom of the third, as her tapper barely eluded the outstretched arms of South County second baseman Taylor Dillow.
The Annandale rally was cut short when Michelle Boynton's snap throw from behind the plate nabbed Hassan at first to end the threat. Gregorowicz exited after the fourth, throwing only 43 pitches -- 31 of which were strikes.
“I just knew where to pitch it, where they weren't hitting it,” said Gregorowicz, who didn't allow a hit in eight innings of work against the Atoms last season. “The [coaches] were calling good pitches, and I was just hitting my spots.”
South County sophomore Stephanie Sbardella started the fourth-inning rally after getting plunked by Annandale pitcher Izzy Yaroch. Sbardella reached second on a wild pitch, and the threat seemed no more after a fielder's choice (that advanced Sbardella) and a flyout.
But with Sbardella waiting at third, South County junior Ashley Ward's well-placed pop up tipped out of shortstop Tammy Pham's mitt, scoring Sbardella for the first and only lead of the game.
“On our team, if you get hits, you'll play,” said South County Al Thompson, whose team is now 4-3 overall, 1-0 in the Patriot District. “It's as simple as that, if you hit, you'll play. We could have the best pitchers in the world, if we don't hit well, we can't win.”
As is typical of this time of year, neither team's bats came completely alive. The two teams combined for only five hits, and Gregorowicz's homer was the only extra-base knock.
“They're a good team,” said Annandale coach Tom Grant, whose team is now 1-6 overall, 0-1 in the Patriot District. “I was pleased, but I just wish our bats were there and it would've made it a little bit more of a game.”
Gregorowicz's understudy, sophomore pitcher Chelsey Dunham, shut the door to start the fifth inning. Dunham echoed what her mentor accomplished in the second -- striking out the side on only 10 pitches.
With Dunham (3 innings pitched, 8 strikeouts and a walk) successfully zapping the life out of Annandale's offense, the Stallions tacked on another insurance run in the sixth. Junior Kayla Reisinger reached on an error, and she moved to third off of a passed ball and a fielder's choice. When South County junior Meaghan Hunt took off from first to second, Annandale chose to throw through to second with two outs, the throw was late and Reisinger scored easily from third.
Annandale will travel to Hayfield Tuesday night, while South County will host West Potomac for its home opener. Both games start at 6:30 p.m.
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