East Meadow, which threatened early against Longwood pitcher Samantha Valentine but had a runner thrown out at the plate to end the first, opened the third with singles off the bats of Claire Travis, Marisa SanAntonio, Cutuli and Shapiro to take a 2-0 lead. Madison West added a run-scoring fielder’s choice and eventually scored on an error to make it 4-0.

That proved more than enough run support for Shapiro, who faced one batter over the minimum in throwing her second straight one-hitter. “I felt really good,” she said. “I tried to figure out the batters’ weaknesses as fast as I could.”

With Shapiro in cruise control, the Lady Jets padded their lead in the fifth and chased Valentine. Cutuli scored on a wild pitch and Dina LaRosa knocked in a run with an infield grounder to make it 6-0. Travis doubled home Taylor Conti in the sixth.

Fritz said the school gave the team a huge sendoff to the state tournament, with students cheering in the hallways inside and the school band playing outside as the Lady Jets boarded the bus. “We had tremendous support,” he said.

Shapiro put on a show in the state semifinal victory. She tossed a three-hitter with 13 strikeouts and helped her own cause with three hits, including a three-run homer, and six RBIs. SanAntonio went 4 for 4, and Conti went 3 for 4.