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Lady Pretzels pull through, 2-0
WINCHESTER — With a freshman pitcher on the mound, two errors in the first inning could have been costly for the New Berlin-Franklin-Waverly Lady Pretzels.
But it didn’t really bother freshman right-hander Hannah Burger.
“I try to keep my cool out on the mound,” she said.
Burger worked her way out of a difficult first inning, and she kept North Greene off the board the rest of the way as New Berlin took a 2-0 win in an opening-round game of the Pittsfield Regional.
The game had to be played at Winchester due to wet grounds at both New Berlin and North Greene.
New Berlin (10-11), the No. 10 seed in the regional, got single tallies in both the fourth and sixth innings to defeat No. 11 North Greene (11-18).
Burger (9-8) went the distance for New Berlin, allowing just four hits and two walks. She struck out six.
“It’s really exciting, especially being a freshman,” Burger said. “This is a great start to my career for high school, so I’m excited.”
New Berlin’s Courtney Schroeder led off the fourth with a double and later scored on a double from Janel Tannehill. A double from Jessica Cody turned into another run in the sixth when a Lucia Jiardina single brought Cody around to score.
“Our hitters came out and got the job done today,” New Berlin coach C.J. Burnett said. “The defense was a little shaky behind Hannah, but we got it done.”
Getting out of the potentially troublesome first inning gave New Berlin all the momentum it needed, Burnett said.
“That’s something we haven’t been able to do all season,” Burnett said, referring to her team’s ability to keep North Greene from scoring after the first-inning errors. “So it was good that we were able to come out and do it today.”
Sarah Smith (10-10) took the loss for North Greene. Smith allowed five hits, two walks and both New Berlin runs. She fanned five.
“They got the big hits when they needed them and we just didn’t,” North Greene coach Tom Scott said. “I’d say that’s basically what it came down to. They had a couple doubles there and they cashed in on them. We had the bases loaded in the first inning, and in the second inning I think we had runners on first and second, too, and couldn’t do anything.
“They cashed in on their opportunities and we just couldn’t.”
New Berlin’s win sets up a 4:30 p.m. meeting today between the Lady Pretzels and the top seed at the Pittsfield Regional, the Beardstown Lady Tigers.
Burnett said she knows her team will be the underdog, but warned that the Lady Pretzels shouldn’t be counted out.
“Hopefully with this momentum, we come in and give them a good game,” she said. “I think if everybody comes with their A game, we’ve got a good chance.”
