Kennedy impresses with win streak

Tired probably doesn't begin to describe the way Kennedy's softball team felt after a 14-1 victory over Great Neck South last Friday.

It's not that the Lady Cougars (6-2 overall, 6-1 in Conference AA-III) were exhausted from banging out the 14 runs, but the fact it was the last of five games in five consecutive days in which the team posted a 4-1 mark and also swept a pair from district-rival Calhoun and Herricks.

Sophomore pitcher Gabbi Calia allowed just one hit (a solo home run) last Friday and struck out eight in the complete game victory, and classmate Sam Finkle went 3-for-4 with a triple, home run and three RBI. Kennedy jumped out to a 5-0 lead in the first inning and cruised to its fourth straight win, pulling within a half-game of Hicksville in Conference AA-III.

The Lady Cougars clawed their way to a sweep of Calhoun in the two days prior to blowing out the Lady Rebels, winning the second game 4-0 behind a complete game shutout from Finkle, who allowed just three hits and struck out seven. "It's great that we have two strong pitchers," Kennedy coach Katie Speiss said. "If we had five games in a week with just one pitcher, [the outcomes] could have been different."

Junior Carly Thea continued her hot hitting out of the leadoff spot, belting a solo homer and driving in two runs as part of a 3-for-4 performance. 

For all of Calhoun's youth, it showed plenty of moxie in battling back from an early five-run deficit against Kennedy in the first game between the teams on Apr. 14. The Lady Colts (2-6 Conference AA-III) forged a 5-5 tie but fell in eight innings thanks to a run-scoring single by freshman Jamie Demmett that chased home Calia. "One thing about our team is that we're young but have a lot of talent," Calhoun coach Jason Boland said. "I think those kinds of games build a lot of character."

Freshman catcher Marisa Marcigliano scored twice in the loss and kept her on-base percentage above .500 through the first eight games. "For a freshman to come up to varsity and get on base like that speaks to our future," Boland said.

Junior Jessica Livingston took the loss in both games, but has helped keep the Lady Colts in nearly every game. Four of the teams six losses have been by one or two runs, and Livingston also pitched her second career no-hitter in a 20-0 victory over Hempstead on Apr. 10, striking out 13. For good measure in the two games with Kennedy, Livingston, now in her fourth varsity campaign, had base hits in six consecutive at-bats. "She has a couple of different pitches and when she's on, she's hard to hit," Boland said.