Pirates, WW-P North both move on in state play
By Bob Nuse, Sports Editor
Caroline Brooks had to make more of a transition to high school softball than most players.
Brooks spent most of her youth playing baseball in the Cranbury-Plainsboro Little League. But rather than stop playing baseball once the players moved on to Babe Ruth baseball on the bigger field, Brooks moved right along with them.
At the same time, she was playing softball for the Thomas Grover Middle School team. That all changed last year as a freshman at West Windsor-Plainsboro High South, where she settled in with the varsity softball team and had to put away her baseball equipment.
”I played baseball until I was 14, and then in seventh and eighth grade I was playing both baseball and softball at the same time,” recalled Brooks, who had three hits on Wednesday to help the Pirates to a 6-0 win over South Brunswick in the opening round of the Central Jersey Group IV tournament.
”My freshman year I stopped playing baseball and just concentrated on softball. Sometimes I miss baseball because it is what I grew up with. I always had a fondness for it. In the seventh and eighth grade there was a rule that if there is a girls equivalent to the sport you have to play. I really liked the eighth grade softball coach and he really motivated me to come out for the team. It was a little bit of a tough transition. Sometimes I would have softball and then baseball later at night. It was a little hectic. (WW-P South coach Nicky) Arias really helped me my freshman year. She and the rest of the girls really helped me a lot.”
The Pirates are certainly glad to have Brooks in the mix with the softball team. She was part of a great all-around team effort in Wednesday’s win. Liz Mendez and Rachel Gagliardo combined to allow just two hits and strike out 13 batters. In addition to the three hits from Brooks, Gina DeMilt had two hits, while Sandy Kaul drove in a pair of runs.
”It was a nice solid game,” said Arias, whose team advanced to host fifth-seeded Howell in a game that was scheduled to be played on Thursday. “We still leave runners on base and stop scoring runs. I tell them we need to keep it going and when a pitcher adjusts we need to adjust.
”Last year we had a bunch of seniors and also lost a couple other players who had to stop playing. So we basically lost seven starters from last year. The new girls have stepped in. The sophomores have taken control as well and our seniors do a great job leading. It really is a team that has worked very well together.”
In other opening round tournament play, eighth-seeded WW-P North topped ninth-seeded Freehold Township, 5-0, in CJ IV play. Sarah Bush had a big two-run double and Taylor Phelan and Madison Bloom both had key hits to back the strong pitching of Kaitlin Perrine.
”It was a good effort for us,” said North coach Jason Petrone, whose team advanced to face top-seeded Middletown South on Thursday. “When Kaitlin pitches like that and we play good defense we can play against anybody. We had one big inning where scored four runs in the second. Taylor Phelan had a big hit and Sarah had the big hit that drove in a couple more.
”It was a nice win for us and now we get a shot at the No. 1 seed and we’ll see what we can do.”
Montgomery, the No. 14 seed in CJ IV, dropped a 13-6 decision to Monroe in its CJ IV opener. Amanda Bolt had a pair of his for the Cougars, who received runs batted in from Emily Case, Alyssa Elicone and Demetria Kitrinos.
Princeton, the No. 11 seed in CJ III, dropped a 4-1 decision to Nottingham. Hannah Zink had a hit and drove in a run for the Little Tigers, who also received a hit from Marisa Gonzalez. Sarah Eisenach allowed just five hits on the mound.
For WW-P South, the win was another step forward for a young team that starts three freshmen. Brooks, while just a sophomore, is a veteran in the lineup.
”Everything was going well today and solid,” she said. “Freshman year I started the second half of the season. I am just trying to step up in the games as we go. Last year we lost a bunch of seniors and we weren’t sure how the season was going to go. But we’re really happy with it.
”For us, our pitchers have been great. At the beginning of every season you are always a little curious about how it will go. But I was confident. I had played with the freshmen when I was in eighth grade and I knew they were a solid group. Everyone has really stepped up to the plate.”
With her baseball days behind her, Brooks’ transition to the softball field seems complete. She’s contributing at the plate and also with her glove in the outfield.
”She had a very long swing and came down on the ball a lot,” Arias said of when Brooks first started to make the transition. “In baseball you are looking more at a pitch that is coming down at you. In softball the ball comes up and rises a little more. So she had to make some adjustments there. It can get tricky with your timing.
”She was playing both at the same time. It helps her in the outfield. You have to cover a lot of ground in the outfield in baseball and she does it very well on the softball field. She is an all-around tough player. She has done a real good job for us. She had been in a little bit of a slump but today she got herself out of it.”