Sussex Academy softball advances with 15-2 win

Hosting its first DIAA softball state tournament game in program history, No. 9 Sussex Academy started off with a bang in the 15-2 victory over Ursuline Academy May 20.

“I was just up there like, ‘I'm just gonna go hit the ball hard,’” said junior Delainie Monitzer. “I had a 1-2 count [and] she threw me a meatball right down the middle. I was locked in and I heard it come off the bat.”

With her first varsity home run, Monitzer gave the Seahawks a 1-0 lead they would not relinquish.

“We just needed to come play like we've been playing the other 18 [games], and that's exactly what they did,” said coach Gerald Jester.  

Although the girls scored just one run in the first, they rattled off five in the second and nine in the third.

“I noticed that before the game today, there were no glassy eyes, blank stares or deer-in-the-headlights look,” Jester said. “They were just relaxing, playing a game, and they have fun.” 

With a 15-0 lead in hand, senior pitcher Carson Gesuero was firmly in control, as she struck out six over four innings.

“I thought it went really smooth; we came out and did what we had to do,” Gesuero said. “We didn't let them think that they had a chance.”

In the offensive outburst that followed the first inning, Monitzer added two doubles to give her three extra-base hits that drove in four runs. She also swiped a bag. Sophomore Caroline White notched three hits, one being a double, as she picked up three RBIs. Joining White and Monitzer in the hat-trick hit club was eighth-grader Danica Bergh, who also drove in a run and smacked a double.

Bergh also patrols shortstop and has looked like she belongs in the heart of a varsity lineup and infield all season.

“I've been playing since a young age, so I have always been into softball,” Bergh said. “I come out here to play varsity as a younger player and just ball out.” 

Ashlyn Troxler, Grayce Glover and Audrey Snyder each collected two hits, as Troxler slapped a triple, Glover knocked a double and Snyder whacked two doubles in the effort.

“These coaches have worked us hard all year, and they just built a belief in us that we are meant to be here, and I feel like everyone's starting to feel that now,” Monitzer said. “This is the best year we've had in school history, and I think that in itself is a good belief that we have; we have a great team culture.”

With the victory, No. 9 Sussex Academy will travel to No. 8 Polytech, a place they won at 6-4 April 3. The game is set for 4 p.m., Thursday, May 22.