Here’s the update from my colleague Dan DeFrancesco:
“Ketcham 8, Clarkstown South 0: At No. 2 Ketchum, Andrea Bombace was 2 for 3 with a three-run home run for the Indians. Marleen Cuevas was 2 for 3 with a two-run home run. Casey Herzog struck out six in the complete game win. Alana Kurtti was 2 for 2 with a double for the No. 3 Vikings. Ketcham will face No. 1 John Jay East Fishkill Saturday at 8 p.m. at Heroes Field in Nanuet.
The Indians had no problem getting on base from the start, scoring two runs in the first inning. Bombace’s home run in the bottom of the third was an absolute bomb. I was surrounded by South fans that all commented how impressed they were with it.
The Vikings downfall really came down to not being able to bring runners home. They left nine runners on base, including four in scoring positions.
Their best opportunity came in the fourth inning when they loaded the bases with one out. Credit Casey Herzog for tightening up and getting out of the inning unscathed.
While we’re on the topic of pitchers, hats off to Herzog for a well pitched game (7 IP, 4 H, 1 BB, 6 K). She showed a lot of variety in her pitches. Coach Melissa Zehr said she is unsure of who will get the nod on Saturday.
Just a side note: Herzog was called for several illegal pitches. I’m not going to pretend like I am a softball whiz, but it had something to with touching the rubber twice before releasing the ball. I asked Coach Heebink about it but she declined to comment. It will be interesting to see what happens in the final if Herzog gets the start.
Regarding the final, when I spoke with Coach Zehr prior to hearing the Jay/Carmel final she said she was hoping to get another shot at cross-town rival John Jay.
“We want to play Jay,” Zehr said. “We lost to them twice this year, but we are on top of our game right now.”
I give credit to Coach Zehr for wanting to play the reigning state champions. The old saying goes “To be the best you have to beat the best” so it’s only fair that if Ketchum were to make a run at the state championship they would have to go through John Jay first.”
The first photo was courtesy of Dan DeFrancesco. And so were the others:
1 Comment
Casey Herzog will definately get the nod on Saturday against John Jay/EF in the Class AA Championship (No doubt about it!!). Herzog just has to continue to pitch the way that she has thrown all season (and last) long. If she throws exactly like she did earlier this year, when they beat Cicero North Syracuse up at the Morabito, they (Ketcham) have an excellent chance of knocking off the defending champs