Like all good cleanup hitters, Hawthorne junior Ava Martinello revels the opportunity to be called upon to produce runs for the Bears.
And she was in top form at the absolute perfect time on Friday as she went 2-for-2 with two RBI and a solo homer as 10th-seeded Hawthorne downed 15th-seeded Lenape Valley, 3-1, in the North 1, Group 1 quarterfinals.
“It suits me, and it makes me want to hit more,” Martinello said. “I’m more excited to go up there and hit.”
Martinello’s solo shot in the bottom of the second inning was particularly big as it tied the game at 1-1 after Lenape Valley’s Callie Stevenson hit a solo homer of her own in the top of the second.
The Patriots, who were fresh off a 5-4 upset over second-seeded Wallington on Thursday, trotted out rookie hurler Michaela Dennehy and that presented issues for Hawthorne.
Dennehy threw hardly any fastballs, instead relying on changeups, screwballs, drop balls and more as she was largely able to keep Hawthorne’s offense off balance. And the Bears only mustered five hits as a team, struck out six times and grounded into two double plays in the infield with the bases loaded.
“We generally don’t love facing that style of pitching,” Hawthorne coach Mook Iannacone said. “It takes time to adjust. Even if I tell them it’s like doing front toss with me and I tell them to sit back and drive it up the middle, it’s tough.”
Eventually, Hawthorne figured things out and was able to time up Dennehy and make some harder contact, including a double by Emma Riglewicz and some hard hit singles to the outfield.
But, thanks to Martinello’s home run, Iannacone knew eventually Hawthorne would figure things out.
“She’s our power hitter and our muscle,” Iannacone said. “We don’t have many home runs but she’s got a…
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