Team Achieves Big Victory for First Time in Over 20 Years
Under the direction of Coaches Laura Malone and Brandon Oppenheim, the 2010 Varsity Lady Dalers finished the regular season in fourth place in Conference I with a record of 9-6. They received a bye in the first round of the playoffs then won the quarterfinal match up 1-0. For the first time in over 20 years, the Lady Dalers headed to the Mitchell Field Softball Complex for the Nassau County AA Semifinals.
Two-time All Long Island and All County pitcher Isabella Corrao along with two-time All Conference catcher Kelly Ann Keenan continued to show their leadership and athletic ability throughout the season. These battery mates, along with contributions from the entire team, brought Farmingdale softball to a new height this season.
In the final regular season game against Syosset, Corrao pitched a season-high of 18 strikeouts. She then singled in Johanna Klein for the winning run; the final score was 2-0. They finished in fourth place and received a bye in the first round of the playoffs.
The quarterfinal match up was against Mepham. Corrao along with Kelly Ann struck out six in a two-hitter. Corrao then drove in freshman Kerri Ossenfort for the game’s only run. The Lady Dalers defense shined in the top of the seventh. Freshman Jenna Crawford made a sliding catch in right field for the second out with a runner on at second. The Mepham runner advanced to third. With two outs, a hard shot was hit close to the bag at second. Freshman second baseman, Kerri Ossenfort, All Division, made the spectacular grab and threw to first for the third out. The Lady Dalers won 1-0.
The semifinal game was against the Conference I winner, East Meadow, who has competed on this stage repeatedly for decades. These Lady Dalers put forth an outstanding effort, during an 11-inning contest. Isabella Corrao was magnificent from the circle. She faced the top hitters in Nassau for over two hours, and kept them off guard with her array of pitches called by Keenan. Corrao struck out 17, gave up three hits and no walks. McKillop from East Meadow struck out 16, allowed four hits, and intentionally walked Corrao five times, to the dismay of the large Daler crowd. Other highlights included the fielder’s choice by Keenan who drove in Ossenfort for the 1-0 lead. The hottest bat for Farmingdale in this game was Jenna Crawford’s. This lefty connected for three hard-hit singles up the middle. Emily Dorso, All Division, nailed a single to center field. Shortstop, Kat Zabielski, All County, demonstrated her strong arm as she threw out runners trying for the infield hit. Tori Kornfeld made a tag out at first base from a throw that took her off the bag.
The international tiebreak rule began after the ninth inning. During this situation, a runner starts the inning at second base with no outs. East Meadow used this advantage to try and steal third. Keenan read the play and threw to Kristie Summus, All Conference, at third for the tag ending the threat. The Lady Dalers were aggressive offensively in extra innings and had opportunity. However, East Meadow’s defense was on, and then they were able to pull out the win by a suicide squeeze in the bottom of the 11th inning. Farmingdale lost 2-1. The Lady Dalers finished overall in Conference I, 11-8 against the toughest competition in Nassau County.
