Spartans come up short to Brunswick in district

By Tom Williams

PREP TOURNAMENTS

Emlyn Knerem pitched a two-hitter to stop Boardman, 3-2, and advance her team to the Div. I district finals today against Ashtabula Lakeside.

BOARDMAN — For six innings, Boardman baserunners against Brunswick pitcher Emlyn Knerem were about as hard to come by as face-value Stanley Cup Final tickets.

Then in the seventh inning, Spartans sophomore Jamie Massaro sent the first pitch she saw from Knerem over the left-field fence. Massaro’s one-out two-run homer sliced Brunswick’s lead to 3-2 in Monday’s Division I district semifinal at the Fields of Dreams.

“That was a heartstopper,” Boardman senior outfielder Katie Hawkins said as the Spartans’ hopes rose.

But that was as close as the youthful Spartans would get. Knerem wasted no time retiring the next two batters on a groundout and strikeout, sending Brunswick to a 3-2 win and to today’s district final against Ashtabula Lakeside.

Boardman’s ouster means that for the first time in at least 15 seasons, a Valley team won’t participate in the Akron regional.

Credit Knerem (15-2), who struck out 14 and walked two in tossing a two-hitter against the Spartans (14-11).

“She pitched a really good game,” said Boardman coach Bill Amero of Knerem, “but our freshman went toe-to-toe with her.”

Amero was referring to Alexandra DiDomenico (4-5) who struck out 10, walked one and surrendered five singles.

“I thought she gave us the best chance to win,” Amero said. “It was a tough decision, but Alex has been throwing the ball well lately.”

It took the Blue Devils (19-4) just two pitches to grab a 1-0 lead. A swirling wind played havoc with Erin Morgan’s flyball to left field. Off-balance, Hawkins couldn’t hold on to the ball as Morgan took second base.

On the next pitch, Morgan broke for third and scored when catcher Massaro’s throw was off target.

In the sixth inning, Melissa Moore singled and scored after three passed balls. Megan Foley, who had walked, took third as Moore scored and she came home on Natalie Romito’s two-out single.

“We preach that the most important out of the inning is the leadoff batter,” Amero said. “The second [baserunner] got on with a walk. Those are the cardinal sins of pitching.”

The Spartans made Knerem pay for walking Shannon Morrow to start the seventh inning. Massaro’s homer came one out later.

“She moves the ball around well,” Brunswick coach Julie Salzman said. ”She kept them off-balance.”

Boardman senior Kelsey Ford agreed.

“She was a good pitcher,” Ford said. “She had amazing riseballs — that’s what got most of us. And she had a few that came inside. Those were good strikes because they choke you up to where you can’t swing.”

With four regular season games to make up, the Spartans’s season isn’t over. With just two seniors and two juniors in the lineup, Hawkins and Ford are impressed with the skills their younger teammates have shown.

“At the beginning, it was a little shaky,” Hawkins said. “We really didn’t know each other very well, but we progressed as a team.”

Ford chimed in, “It was a little iffy but now, we’re like sisters.”

In his 12 seasons leading Boardman, Amero has never depended on so many younger players. He emphasized that youth wasn’t a factor but defensive misplays were.

“That’s no excuse — this is a game we should have won,” Amero said. “Of our 11 losses, we really got beat three times. The other ones, if we don’t make an error here or come up with a key at-bat there, we could be an 18-4 team. Today’s game was an illustration of why we’re not.”

williams@vindy.com