Viking softball team wins two straight convincingly

By: Carolyn M. Hartko
   Back-to-back road victories against Greater Middlesex Conference Red Division foes early this week have the South Brunswick High School girls’ softball team back at .500 at 2-2. The Lady Vikings rolled over Piscataway, 10-1, on Monday, and checked off Woodbridge 6-1 on Tuesday.
   According to Viking head coach Danielle Matlack, opponents always have to be concerned about the Barrons’ power hitters going into a game. But South’s defense worked overtime on Tuesday to shut Woodbridge down.
   "We are playing very good defense," the coach said. "Niki (Monfasani) made a lot of nice plays at third. And Sam (Littlejohn) made a nice play on the pitching mound, tossing the ball over to Larissa (Rogan) at first with a backhand."
   Littlejohn, a sophomore, struck out three and allowed just one run on four hits to earn her second win of the season.
   "Sam’s pitching great," Matlack said. "She’s not overpowering anybody, but she’s got a wicked spin on that ball, and people just aren’t hitting the ball."
   Senior co-captain Kim Ryan paced the offense, going 2-for-3 with a double and one run scored. Senior shortstop Cyndi Fregoni (1-for-3) chased in three runs with a bases-loaded single, putting her team up 4-0 in the second inning. Woodbridge answered with one run in the third inning, but couldn’t get another past the Viking defense.
   "We just kind of scattered the other hits," Matlack said. "Offensively, we’ve been having a nice combination of hitting and putting down bunts at the right time. We hit that way (Monday), too. We blew that game open with bunts."
   South Brunswick had two big innings in that game, scoring five runs in the second, and adding five more in the fourth. Junior outfielder Pam Weiss went 2-for-3 at Piscataway, with a run scored and two RBI. Rogan contributed three RBI on 2-for-4 hitting, and she scored once.
   "We came out shaky in the first," Matlack said of Monday’s contest. "We had two errors. (Piscataway) scored one in the first, but then the rest of the game, defensively, we shut them down. Again, Sam pitched well. She didn’t walk anybody."
   As of press time, South Brunswick was anticipating a meeting with one of the better teams in the Red Division. They were scheduled to be at Edison on Wednesday. But Matlack felt her team has been growing in confidence, and not just because of the two recent wins.
   "The first two teams we played are very good," the coach said. "East Brunswick’s ranked in the top 20 in the state, and Lawrence had a vote for the top 20 in the state. We didn’t play bad against them – we just didn’t hit."