Source: Observer/Eccentric

Author: Dan O'Meara

Farmington Hills Mercy had the best possible response to its disappointment at not being able to play for the Catholic League softball championship and a possible third straight title.

The Marlins won the Mattawan Invitational by defeating Portage Central, the state’s No. 1-ranked team in Division 1, in the final game and restored their confidence with a 9-5 victory.

“It didn’t matter who we played,” Mercy coach Alec Lesko said. “Our main objective was to play our style of game, take care of ourselves and do all the right things. If we did that, good things would happen.

“We tried not to pay attention to who was in the other dugout. We just needed to get things accomplished, and I think the girls responded very well.

“We hit well all day; our pitching was good all day. The team got to learn more about itself heading into the state tournament. It was just a fun day.”

The Marlins (21-3) won two games to reach the final, trouncing Parchment in the opener, 12-3, and host Mattawan, a Division 1 honorable mention, in a semifinal, 17-5.

Leading hitter

Junior Abby Krzywiecki, who was the winning pitcher in the first game, batted .846 (11-for-13) in the tournament, hit four home runs and had four RBI.

“I was extremely happy with our approach,” Lesko said. “We had timely hits. Abby had a monster day. It seemed every time she was up, she was in a position to drive in runs.”

Andrea Elmore pitched complete games in the last two. She gave up six hits to Mattawan and nine to Portage, but she didn’t walk a batter in either game. She had a combined eight strikeouts.

“Andrea pitched well,” Lesko said. “She was always battling and making the other team earn it.”

In the first game, Krzywiecki was 4-for-5 with two RBI. Sophia VanAcker, Nicole Belans and Cari Padula had two hits each. Padula hit a solo homer and had three RBI. Belans knocked in two runs with triple and a sacrifice fly.

Parchment had two of its three hits in the first inning and took a 3-0 lead with Abby Patton’s three-run homer. Krzywiecki struck out 12 batters, walked three and hit one.

Semifinal slugfest

In the Mattawan game, Krzywiecki was 4-for-4 with three home runs (two solos and a two-run blast) and four RBI.

Shannon Gibbons and Alex Sobczak had two hits apiece. Sobczak also had six RBI, Molly Murphy and Jordan Johnson two each.

Mercy had a 4-3 lead until a 13-run sixth inning. Sobczak, who had been 0-for-3 with three flyouts, hit a two-run single and a grand slam in the sixth.

As the team’s leadoff batter, Sobczak has 101 plate appearances and has received 47 walks. Fifteen of those have been intentional passes. She has scored 46 runs.

“Our expectation is people (on the other side of the state) don’t know her quite as well and they might not pitch around her like they did in our conference games,” Lesko said. “She’s always a threat.”

Murphy’s two-run double in the fifth gave Mercy a 4-2 lead. Johnson drove in two runs with a single in the sixth; Anna Kiafoulis, Morgan Ewald and Gibbons had RBI singles in the big inning.

The Wildcats, who won the Division 1 state title in 2011 and 2013, scored all of their runs on home runs. Jenna Bartz and Amber Mazahzan hit two-run dingers and Meaghan Markus a solo shot.

Marlins finish well

VanAcker and Krzywiecki went 3-for-4 in the final game. VanAcker’s two-run double in the fourth gave the Marlins a 6-2 lead, and Krzywiecki hit a two-run homer in a three-run fifth.

Padula, who hit a solo homer, Gibbons and Murphy chipped in two hits apiece. Murphy had a double and knocked in two runs. Johnson also had two RBI with a sacrifice fly and a groundout.

Central’s Brooke Wyman hit a solo homer, Adaisha Heidtman a two-run double and Hannah McQueen a two-run single. Mercy had 15 hits in each game.

“We talk about doing the simple things all the time,” Lesko said. “If we take care of all the little things, we think we have a chance to win.

“We’re putting the ball in play; we didn’t give away any at-bats. We were able to get our bunts down; we made the routine plays, and our pitchers threw strikes. That’s just a recipe to give ourselves a chance to win every day.

“As it stands now, we’re working hard and hoping to get a few more games in before we get going in the state tournament. We’re really excited to see what we can do and accomplish.”