|
THG/Dan Russoman
Hammonton’s Jess Combs
makes contact during last week’s win against
Oakcrest.
by Dan
Russoman, Gazette Staff Writer
HAMMONTON—Taking on a tough
Oakcrest team that had almost upset them earlier
in the season, Hammonton High School’s softball
team made easier work of the visiting Falcons
last week, cruising to a 6-0 win.
Senior Michelle Rapp struck out eight and
allowed four hits to earn the shutout, helping
her own cause with two hits and three runs
batted in.
The victory was Rapp’s second of the week,
following a 12-1 victory against Ocean City
earlier in the week. After a few shaky outings
where she was hurt by walks, Rapp appeared much
sharper against Oakcrest, walking only two in
seven innings.
“She (Rapp) really pitched well today. She
settled in, hit her spots and had a great game.
As a senior, especially with a team as young as
ours, we need her to step up and be a leader.
And she did that today,” Hammonton coach Stacy
Jones said.
Rapp got off to a rocky start, as Oakcrest’s
first two batters singled. But after the lead
runner was thrown out at the plate, the senior
pitcher settled down, allowing just one runner
past second base the rest of the game.
After escaping a jam in the top of the first,
Hammonton struck in the bottom of the inning,
sending seven batters to the plate and scoring
three runs.
Jones made some lineup adjustments for the game,
hoping to produce more offense, and the changes
paid off, as the Blue Devils scored six times in
the first two innings.
Errors allowed Hammonton’s first two batters,
Morgan Costa and Nicole Brodbeck to reach base
before Jess Combs lined an RBI single, scoring
Costa and moving Brodbeck to third.
Rapp followed with a ground ball to short that
scored Brodbeck for a 2-0 lead. Jackie Scardino
then singled in Combs, and Hammonton had a 3-0
advantage.
The Devils’ offense continued to fire in the
second inning, tacking on three more runs. Becca
DellaPeruta singled and Rachele Pino reached on
an error before Costa bunted the runners over a
base. Brodbeck singled in one run, and two
batters later Rapp lined a single to score two
more runs.
“We’ve been in kind of a funk, so I changed the
lineup a bit to try to jumpstart things,” Jones
said.
“I think it sends a little bit of a message that
we need to produce better with runners on base.
I made the changes to try to find a bat near the
bottom of the lineup that can get a hit with
runners in scoring position. It (the lineup) is
a work in progress. We tweaked it today, and
we’ll keep tweaking it until the playoffs
start,” she said.
Oakcrest threatened in the third, putting
runners on second and third with two outs, but
Rapp ended the inning with a strikeout.
Rapp finished strong, retiring 11 of the final
13 batters she faced, four on strikeouts.
Against Ocean City, Rapp tossed a three-hitter
as Hammonton rolled to a 12-1 win. Combs and
Rapp each had RBI triples, and Combs scored
twice.
The Blue Devils opened the week with a 7-6 win
at Atlantic City. Scardino had two hits and an
RBI, while Corie Adamucci drove in two runs for
the Devils.
Becca Davis earned the win, striking out four.
“We had a very good week. Coming off a
disappointing loss in the (Hammonton)
Tournament, and seeing some other teams reach
the finals, I think that motivated us,” Jones
said.
The three victories helped put Hammonton in
position to earn a high seed in the upcoming
South Jersey Group III playoffs. Although the
Blue Devils are playing well, Jones feels there
is still plenty or room for improvement for the
defending sectional champions.
“We’re not firing on all cylinders yet. We’ll
continue to tweak the lineup to find the right
fit. We play a lot of sophomores, so there’s
going to be ups and downs for them. But,
overall, I think we’ve done very well,” Jones
said.
|
