Serra Catholic softball overpowers GCC, clinches section title

By: Jose Negron
Tuesday, May 9, 2023 | 9:37 PM

An offensive onslaught helped lead Serra Catholic to its first section title in eight years Tuesday afternoon.

The Eagles pounded 13 hits, including four during a four-run second inning and five more in a seven-run fourth, en route to a 13-0 rout of Greensburg Central Catholic in a five-inning Section 2-2A contest.

With the win, Serra (15-2, 10-0) stretched its winning streak to 10 while clinching an outright section crown for the first time since 2015.

“This is a special group, and that was a dominant performance,” Serra Catholic coach Denny Willaman said. “To see the work they’ve put in and to see them take that vision of winning a section title and make it happen, I just couldn’t be happier for these girls.”

Caroline Malandra set the tone at the top of Serra’s lineup by going 4 for 4 with two home runs and four RBIs. She’s now batting .768 with eight homers and 39 RBIs this season.

The rest of the lineup followed, as three more players finished with multi-hit performances.

Lida Wos went 3 for 4 in the No. 2 spot, legging out three infield singles and scoring two runs. Olivia Gergely and Hope Lyons were productive in the No. 6 and 7 spots in the order. They each had two hits and combined for three doubles. Gergely drove in a pair of runs.

“We always say dictate, defeat and win,” Gergely said. “That’s a mantra we’ve embraced, and it’s helped us get to where we are.”

Serra secured the regular-season sweep of the Centurions (10-2, 7-2) after earning a 6-5 win on its home field April 13.

In that matchup, GCC totaled nine hits and took advantage of four errors by the Eagles.

That wasn’t the case this time around.

Madison Zigarovich limited the Centurions to four hits in five shutout innings. She walked two and struck out five.

The home team had a few chances to make something happen, but they couldn’t get a timely hit. In the second, they loaded the bases on singles by Emma Henry and Erica Rodriguez and a one-out walk to Maddy Bova. Zigarovich escaped the jam by striking out a pair.

Then, in the third and fourth innings, GCC managed to get runners in scoring position, only to leave them stranded again.

In addition to its offensive struggles, GCC committed three crucial errors during Serra’s high-scoring second and fourth innings.

“We just had too many errors and couldn’t get a hit when we needed it,” GCC coach Mike Gaffney said. “We have to put this behind us, though. They won, and they’re a good team. You can’t make mistakes like that against good teams. We made mistakes, and they capitalized. Are they 13 runs better than us? Maybe not, but today they were.”

After a scoreless first inning, Gergely helped get Serra’s offense going with a one-out double in the second. After a bloop single by Lyons, Gergely managed to trot home on a groundout by Zigarovich that made it 1-0 Eagles.

Maria Goldstein reached on a catcher’s interference call, and Malandra followed with a liner into right field. Lyons and Goldstein scored easily, and Malandra hustled her way home for an inside-the-park home run and an early four-run advantage.

Serra’s big inning came in the fourth when a pair of miscues helped get things started.

After Zigarovich reached on a walk, Kelly Morrissey entered as a courtesy runner and eventually scored on a GCC error. Malandra singled, moved to second on an infield single by Wos and advanced to third on a walk to Ava Wisniewski. Malandra then came in to score on a passed ball that made it 6-0.

The two biggest hits of the inning came in the form of a two-run single by Tori Tom and a two-run double by Gergely, who later scored on another Centurions error that made it 11-0.

The Eagles plated their final two runs in the fifth on a solo home run by Malandra that cleared the fence in left-center field and an RBI triple by Wisniewski.

“These girls just try to dictate every at bat and every inning,” Willaman said. “It’s a message they’ve come up with and have really embraced.”

Serra will finish off its regular-season schedule at Latrobe on Thursday, and Greensburg Central Catholic concludes its section slate with a trip to Ellis School on Wednesday.

Tags: Greensburg C.C., Serra Catholic