See this story at BrooklynDaily.com.
By Joseph Staszewski
Brooklyn Daily
Everyone in the Fontbonne Hall dugout knew what Maria Serrantino was going to do when she stepped to plate in the bottom of the seventh inning — except for her.
Bonnies coach Frank Marinello said he predicted tthe half inning before that the junior slugger would win the Bay Ridge school its first-ever diocesan Class AA softball title with a walk-off homer run.
“I didn’t [hear it],” Serrantino said, “Everybody else did, apparently everybody else in the whole park knew.”
She didn’t hear it, but she sure did it.
Serrantino lined a Theresa Armano pitch deep over the left-field fence for a game-winning, two-run homer to give Fontbonne a thrilling 6–4 win over St. Francis Prep in Game Three of the Brooklyn-Queens championship series on Tuesday afternoon at Queens College. Thanks to Serrantion’s blast, the Bonnies become the first Brooklyn team to win the crown since Bishop Kearney won it in 2004.
“I knew we had the best kid in the best situation,” Marinello said.
It was her second homer of the afternoon as her solo blast in Game Two helped give the Bonnies a 3–1 victory after losing the first game on Monday 3–2 in nine innings. The Bonnies advance to play Archdiocesan winner St. Joseph by-the-Sea in the city final 5 pm Thursday at Queens College before competing in the Catholic state tournament on May 28.
“It’s just a surreal moment,” Marinello said.
The blast helped Fontbonne (12–3) recover from blowing a 4–1 lead it built after four innings thanks to RBI hits from Natalia Sroga, Kristina Mandala and Delaina Allegretti. The Terriers (10–5) scored three runs off tired starter Nicolette Trapani to get even at 4-4. Trapani kept it there by getting a strike out to end the inning and then stranded a runner on third with one out in the six, one of six runners left on by St. Francis Prep.
It was the only time the junior windmiller showed any weakness after tossing nine innings the day before and tossing 228 pitches over the two games on Tuesday. Trapani, who threw a three-hitter in Game 2, admitted to being tired even before the final game started, but pushed through.
“I knew I didn’t want to give up,” she said. “These girls definitely deserved this win. I just kept going.”
That’s been the demeanor all season of a team, whose motto was “It’s Our Time” They never stopped believing they would make school history
Their time has finally come.
Reach reporter Joseph Staszewski at jstaszewski@cnglocal.com. Follow him on twitter @cng_staszewski.