POPLAR RIDGE - It's been a cooperative effort between pitchers Lianna May and Julie Hewitt all season.
Nothing has changed in the postseason.
May and Hewitt combined on a shutout, allowing two hits as the Chiefs rolled 8-0 over Groton in the quarterfinals of the Section IV, Class C tournament Tuesday. The third-seeded Chiefs will travel to second seed Tioga (19-4) for the semifinals at 4:30 p.m. Thursday.
May and Hewitt only allowed one hit apiece as they combined their skills in the pitching circle to overpower the Indian hitters.
“I think working together throws the batters off and we have more success that way,” May said. “We work really well together.”
“The different speeds and techniques of the two pitchers offset the batters,” Chiefs head coach Dave Hewitt added.
May started the game, pitching the first three innings and striking out one while allowing one hit. She also had three hits with a double and an RBI.
Julie Hewitt earned the win as she threw four innings, recording six strikeouts and giving up one hit. She added three hits and four RBIs at the plate. Coming off injuries this season, Julie Hewitt has not had much of a chance to throw and is still trying to get back in a groove.
“Julie's been injured quite a bit and hasn't been able to pitch much,” Dave Hewitt said. “She's pitching like she would in March, which is why it's great to be able to switch it up with the two of them and get that cooperative effort.”
Although the Chiefs have defeated Groton twice this season, Julie Hewitt was a little worried about whether or not the team was prepared enough.
“We haven't played in two weeks so I didn't think we were on top of our game, but we were and it was a really nice win,” Julie Hewitt said.
A two-week break did not seem to affect Southern Cayuga at the plate, as Kim Willis put the Chiefs on the board with a first-inning home run, her only hit of the game and her third homer of the season. The Chiefs followed that inning up with three more runs in the second, one in the fifth and the final three in the sixth.
“We didn't overlook them, we were confident that we could beat them but we just prepared and played our best because anything can happen,” May said.
Lindsey Doeing went 2-for-3 and Felicia Allen and Jerilyn Lawyer each added one hit to lead Southern Cayuga.
“We had a lot of good hits,” Dave Hewitt said. “We did leave a lot of girls on base though and made two errors tonight showing that we were a little rusty from those two weeks off.”
The Chiefs (18-2) must now prepare for a tough Tioga team that is ranked 19th in the state. The teams split two close games his season - the Chiefs won the first meeting, 2-1, but then lost the second game, 4-2.
“We can't afford any errors against Tioga,” Dave Hewitt said. “Their pitcher averages 13 to 15 strikeouts a game and we need to concentrate on getting the ball out there in play. If we make errors they will take that chance to score but if we play well and keep those errors down it will be a good game.”
Chiefs 8
Indians 0
May and Hewitt combined on a shutout, allowing two hits as the Chiefs rolled 8-0 over Groton in the quarterfinals of the Section IV, Class C tournament Tuesday. The third-seeded Chiefs will travel to second seed Tioga (19-4) for the semifinals at 4:30 p.m. Thursday.
May and Hewitt only allowed one hit apiece as they combined their skills in the pitching circle to overpower the Indian hitters.
“I think working together throws the batters off and we have more success that way,” May said. “We work really well together.”
“The different speeds and techniques of the two pitchers offset the batters,” Chiefs head coach Dave Hewitt added.
May started the game, pitching the first three innings and striking out one while allowing one hit. She also had three hits with a double and an RBI.
Julie Hewitt earned the win as she threw four innings, recording six strikeouts and giving up one hit. She added three hits and four RBIs at the plate. Coming off injuries this season, Julie Hewitt has not had much of a chance to throw and is still trying to get back in a groove.
“Julie's been injured quite a bit and hasn't been able to pitch much,” Dave Hewitt said. “She's pitching like she would in March, which is why it's great to be able to switch it up with the two of them and get that cooperative effort.”
Although the Chiefs have defeated Groton twice this season, Julie Hewitt was a little worried about whether or not the team was prepared enough.
“We haven't played in two weeks so I didn't think we were on top of our game, but we were and it was a really nice win,” Julie Hewitt said.
A two-week break did not seem to affect Southern Cayuga at the plate, as Kim Willis put the Chiefs on the board with a first-inning home run, her only hit of the game and her third homer of the season. The Chiefs followed that inning up with three more runs in the second, one in the fifth and the final three in the sixth.
“We didn't overlook them, we were confident that we could beat them but we just prepared and played our best because anything can happen,” May said.
Lindsey Doeing went 2-for-3 and Felicia Allen and Jerilyn Lawyer each added one hit to lead Southern Cayuga.
“We had a lot of good hits,” Dave Hewitt said. “We did leave a lot of girls on base though and made two errors tonight showing that we were a little rusty from those two weeks off.”
The Chiefs (18-2) must now prepare for a tough Tioga team that is ranked 19th in the state. The teams split two close games his season - the Chiefs won the first meeting, 2-1, but then lost the second game, 4-2.
“We can't afford any errors against Tioga,” Dave Hewitt said. “Their pitcher averages 13 to 15 strikeouts a game and we need to concentrate on getting the ball out there in play. If we make errors they will take that chance to score but if we play well and keep those errors down it will be a good game.”
Chiefs 8
Indians 0
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