See this story at BrooklynDaily.com.
By Mike Morton
Brooklyn Daily
For the first six innings of Saturday’s game against DeWitt Clinton, it appeared that Telecommunications had a win all wrapped up. The Yellow Jackets led by six, and held the explosive Clinton offense to just one hit and no runs.
However, the Governors’ offense woke up in the bottom of the seventh inning when they put together their first rally. Clinton tied the score and sent the game into extra innings, where it eventually defeated visiting Telecom 7–6 in eight innings in Public School Athletic League Class A softball crossover play on Sunday.
The Yellow Jackets committed a crucial error in the bottom of the seventh that allowed two runs for Clinton. Telecom also experienced two passed balls in the inning, allowing the Bronx school’s runners to advance freely throughout the inning. These fundamental mistakes led to the loss, coach Glenn McCartney said.
“The stuff we practice everyday, and we did for six innings great, the seventh inning we didn’t do,” he said.
The disappearance of the elite pitching seen from Christina Morales throughout the first six innings was also central to the loss. After not allowing a hit until the sixth inning, things unraveled for Morales in the seventh after she allowed a leadoff walk.
“We walked the leadoff batter, which is a cardinal sin,” McCartney said. “You can’t walk the leadoff batter with a lead.”
Morales was the key to the game in the first six innings, finding success both on the mound and at the plate. She had four hits and two RBIs in the game.
She was on deck in the top of the eighth, with runners on second and third with two outs, when Angelica Cruz grounded the ball back to Clinton pitcher Maguette Fofana to end the inning.
Telecom — a Class B team two years ago — came into the game with a 6–1 record in league play, leading the Brooklyn A division. The inability to close out the game with Clinton has McCartney questioning whether his team can compete with the top teams in the five boroughs.
“I thought we got to a level where we can play against the city’s best teams and compete and beat them,” he said. “Obviously I was wrong. We can play with them, but we haven’t proven we can beat any of them yet.”
Reach reporter Joseph Staszewski at jstaszewski@cnglocal.com. Follow him on twitter @cng_staszewski.