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Major upset opportunity slips away from RKA in late innings, playoff loss marks end of an era for Lady Tigers softball
By Jason Eisenberg
May 26, 2011 -- For the past decade, as dozens of players came and went, there was one constant in the dugout for the Riverdale/Kingsbridge Academy softball team.
Head coach Bob Finz personally created the Lady Tigers, helped transform them from being a developmental program to a dominant force at the PSAL’s “B” Division, was still there on the sideline when his team earned its promotion to the “A” league three years ago and has since seen them consistently prove capable of competing with the biggest and best schools in New York City.
Earlier this year, before even the first game had been played, Finz announced that he would be retiring as head coach at season’s end, but will still remain in his position as the school’s athletic director. So, this long and storied chapter in the history of RKA softball officially came to a close on Monday afternoon as the Lady Tigers were eliminated from the postseason in a hard-fought 6-3 loss to Francis Lewis. However, if the 62-year-old skipper had to end his successful run in defeat, he could not have asked for a more admirable effort from his underdog squad.
Just three days after the 20th-seeded Lady Tigers dispatched of 13th-seeded Newtown in the postseason opener -- despite playing without two key starters that were away on a senior trip -- RKA had a much larger upset right there for the taking in this second round matchup. The local team actually led by one run entering the bottom of the fourth and managed to keep it close the whole way, but just could not prevent a late offensive surge by fourth-ranked Francis Lewis in the end.
“It is just starting to sink in that this was the last game for me and actually it is kind of a euphoric feeling. I might be down if we got blown out, but the girls played great, it was a really good game,” said Coach Finz. “I told them right from the beginning that we could play with this team, that they were not overpowering, and I am proud to see just how close we came to pulling it out.”
With a spot in the quarterfinals at stake, the two squads battled through a pair of scoreless innings to open the game, as RKA junior pitcher Zanovia Pierce limited the powerful Lewis lineup to just a single base-hit over this period of time. The Lady Tigers would get on the board first, when freshman Danielle Selsey singled to shallow leftfield during the third frame to drive in Jennifer Lorenzo. RKA nearly added a second run, but Ariel Torres was caught on a daring steal attempt at home plate.
Lewis would take advantage of an RKA error and even the game in the bottom of the third on an unearned run. The Lady Tigers would immediately strike back, though, as junior catcher Rosa Le led off the fourth by crushing a bomb over the head of the Lewis rightfielder and the ball rolled all the way to the track while Le circled the bases for a home run. The Lewis bats finally came to life in the bottom of the fourth with three singles -- as well as an RKA error in the outfield -- that resulted in two runs and gave the home team its first lead of the day. The fourth-seed would double its advantage with another run in the fifth, but the Lady Tigers were still not buried yet.
In the top of the sixth, senior Erica Wilczek launched an RBI triple to deep leftfield and cut the deficit in half. Then, just moments after she stopped at third base, Coach Finz tried to catch Lewis off guard by sending Wilczek home on a risky attempt to even the score, but just like her teammate earlier in the game, she was gunned down at the plate.
“Both the catcher and the pitcher had their backs to the field, so I do not regret making that call at all,” said Finz. “I wanted to force them to make a play and they turned around just in time or we would have tied the game.”
From there, Lewis added a pair of insurance runs in the bottom of the sixth to finally deliver the knockout punch to RKA’s dream of an upset.
“It is sad that it is over but I am also really excited about how we played today. This is a young group and many of my teammates are new to this experience of being in the playoffs, so I am very happy with how well everybody did in this game,” said a teary-eyed Wilczek, who was one of three seniors wearing an RKA jersey for the final time. “This team has been like a family for the past few years and that feeling starts right at the top. Finz is much more than just a coach, he is like a father figure and is always there for every one of us, through both the ups and downs.”
Along with Wilczek, the Lady Tigers also lose Lorenzo and Torres to graduation, but will still return a solid core of players that should enable them to remain just as competitive next season. The only question is who will be at the helm when the spring of 2012 rolls around.
“That has not been decided yet, but whoever it ends up being, I am confident they will take over a team that will be strong again one year from now,” said Finz. “You can also bet I will still be overlooking things. I know I will miss these girls and this team too much to not be involved at all.”
REPORTER’S NOTEBOOK
RKA PLAYER OF THE GAME: Zanovia Pierce - The junior pitcher held fourth-seeded Francis Lewis to its second-lowest run total in 15 games this season. Consider that Lewis had scored at least 10 runs in eight different games, including a season-high of 23 runs (twice) as well as 19 runs in the previous round of the playoffs, and you get an idea of what Pierce accomplished by holding this opponent to just six on the day. Maybe even more importantly, RKA’s ace walked just a single batter after struggling with control problems at times throughout the season.
Honorable mention: Rosa Le - The junior catcher waited until the biggest game of the year to hit her first home run of the season. This clutch hit temporarily gave RKA a 2-1 lead in the top of the fourth inning, but unfortunately the Lady Tigers would not be able to maintain that advantage.
RKA Report Card
Offense: B-
RKA’s offensive production might have been limited in this game -- a total of five hits and three runs -- but they certainly made most of those hits count. Three of the five hits drove in runs, including Selsey’s RBI single, Wilczek’s RBI triple and Le’s solo homer. This output is nothing to be ashamed of when considering that Francis Lewis allowed two runs or less in eight of 13 league games this season.
Defense: C
The Tigers made three errors on the day, which is not an embarrassing total by any means, but unfortunately they all proved to be extra costly. Each of the three mistakes directly led to runs that would not have otherwise scored and this likely made the difference in the outcome of the game. The infield was steady defensively for the most part, but the outfield struggled to handle a few key hits.
Pitching: B+
Aside from a few timely displays of power with the bat by her teammates, Zanovia Pierce was the main reason that RKA had a chance to win this game. The junior pitcher walked just one batter and struck out four, while allowing only eight hits and six runs -- four earned -- on the day. It was only the second time in 15 games that Francis Lewis did not score at least seven runs.
