News
Softball team wins Skyline Championship!
4.29.2007
It turns out the greatest pitcher in Manhattanville history can hit a little, too. Senior Maggie Thomas (Malvern, Pa.) drove a 1-0 pitch in the bottom of the seventh inning just inside the left field foul pole for a game-winning three-run home run Sunday afternoon at Manhattanville Field, giving the Valiants a second straight improbable last inning 3-2 win over Saint Joseph’s (L.I.) and clinching an automatic berth in the NCAA Tournament.
Thomas, who was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player, leapt around the bases with her arms in the air after the ball cleared the fence and was mobbed at home plate in a raucous celebration in front of the home crowd. The senior had been 0-for-2 with a pair of strikeouts in the game against reigning Pitcher of the Year Jennifer Martinez, but locked in on pitch from the hard-throwing junior and turned it into one of the program’s all-time great moments.
“She [Thomas] has always been a good hitter,” Head Coach Dale Martin said after the game. “And today was her moment.”
The Valiants will make a third straight trip to the NCAA Tournament but were able to erase some ugly memories from last year’s Skyline Tournament, when Martinez pitched the Golden Eagles to a pair of wins over Manhattanville Sunday, forcing the Valiants to sweat out an at large bid. There will be no nervous waiting this year for the Valiants, who entered the bottom of the seventh inning trailing against Martinez and the Golden Eagles in two straight games only to emerge victorious both times.
“We believe in one another and we trust each other, and that’s pulled us through,” Martin said. “We trust the fact that we can always come back, that we’re there for each other and that someone will always step up.
“There have been some amazing moments from our year and from the very first game we’ve fought from behind. They’ve shown a lot of heart and the thing I’m most proud of is everyone’s taken a turn and been the hero; that’s been critical to our success.”
There were plenty of heroes in the seventh inning alone Sunday, when with one out Nicole Oliva (Hopewell Junction, N.Y.) fought off a couple close pitches and then singled to center on an 0-2 count. The next batter, Michele Ribeiro (West Hartford, Conn.) also hung tough against Martinez, spoiling several pitches before grounding the ball to third and, after a brief bobble by the third baseman, beating the throw to first by a hair to put the tying run on. And then came Thomas.
The senior pitcher was her usual self in the circle, tossing her third straight complete game in the tournament and winning for the 99th time in her career. Only three pitchers in NCAA Division III history have won more than 100 career games, an exclusive club Thomas can join if the Valiants win a game in the NCAA Tournament. Thomas’ Sunday line read seven innings, eight hits, two runs and three strikeouts.
The Valiants only had one hit in the game entering the seventh, a fifth inning single by Ribeiro, and combined for only six hits in the two wins over Saint Joseph’s (L.I.), getting each of those hits in the final three innings. In fact, the Valiants did not score a run in any of their three tournament games before the sixth inning and left only six runners on base all weekend.
Martinez went the distance for the fourth straight game – she threw 30.0 innings and nearly 350 pitches in two days – but struck out 10 in the championship game and 54 for the tournament. Saint Joseph’s (L.I.) (23-11) reached the title game with a 6-1 win over Merchant Marine in Sunday’s first game.
Manhattanville (27-8) will learn the date, location and time of their NCAA Regional Sunday, May 6 when the NCAA Tournament pairings are announced. The NCAA Regionals will be played May 10-14 at locations to be determined. All tournament information will also be posted on www.GoValiants.com when it becomes available.