Posen mercies three in NSL, loses pitching duel
by Peter Jakey, Managing Editor
The Viking softball team came away with a split Monday in the annual showdown for the top of the North Star League. Hillman?s Maci Shook out dueled Leanne Buczkowski, 2-0, in Posen. Both pitchers were stingy with the base runners, allowing no walks and a total of four hits in six innings. Shook only gave up only one of them, while striking out seven. Posen (12-2, 7-1) mercied the Tigers in game two, 11-1. ?She (Maci) is one of the better pitchers that we?ll see all season. She was on top of her game,? said coach Glenn Budnick. ?Some of the balls we did hit were right at people. She did her job on the mound and she deserved it.? Shook struck out seven.
?BY THE same token, Leanne pitched a great game too,? said Budnick. She struck out five and allowed only three hits. ?It was a great game by both teams. Both pitchers had great control.? Hillman scored one unearned run in the third and fourth innings. Posen?s only hit was a bloop single by Paige Lewandowski in the bottom of the sixth. She moved to third with a stolen base and a wild pitch with one out, but was stranded at third. Shook got the nod in game two, however, the results were far different when the Posen batters strode to the plate. The Vikings used a five-run second to set the tone against Hillman?s ace.
STARTING PITCHER Lindsay Ponik was 3-for-3 at the plate, including a two-run double in the fifth. Anna Couture, Abbie Delekta and Cheryl Romel all had hits in the inning. Shook was relieved after three innings, while Ponik struck out eight in five innings. She gave up only one walk. Janice Ciarkowski had a two RBI-single in the bottom of the fifth, while Ponik smoked her second double of the game down the left field line to collect her third RBI of the contest.
Abbie Delekta?s bloop RBI single brought in run No. 11 to put the finishing touch on the early finish. ?They were confident after the first game,? said Budnick. ?Our girls swung the bats and put the ball in play, had a big inning, and rolled from there. ?We?ll take the split and move on to Thursday. Now we have to take care of business down in Arenac.? Hillman shutout Arenac, 4-0 and 3-0, this season. The girls travel to Fairview Monday afternoon. THE VIKES roughed up Mio last
Ponik pitched a four-inning perfect game. She struck out all but two batters. The top hitters follow: Buczkowski, 4-for-4, 2B, 2 RBI; Ponik, 3-for-4, 2-2B, 5 RBI; Ciarkowski, 2-for-4, 2B, 3 RBI; Ashley Meyers, 2-for-3, 2B, RBI; Lewandowski, 2-for-2, RBI. Cheryl Romel sparked a seven run second in game two with a grand slam, but she wasn?t done, as she blasted her second homer of the season over the fence in the third. She ended the game with six RBI. The bases loaded homer is believed to be the first grand slam over the fence in school history.
Ciarkowski was the winning pitcher, striking out three in three innings. Lewandowski went the final frame (3 H, 2 K?s, 0 W). The rest of the hitters follow: Judy Romel, 3-for-3, RBI; Buczkowski, 3-4, 2B, RBI; Ponik, 2-3, 2 RBI; and LeAnn Strzelecki, 2-3, RBI. VIKING NOTE: Last week?s stat regarding Ponik?s career victories should have stated she won her 25th game on the mound. The Advance apologizes for the error.