Teammates stampeded towards each other near first base, cherishing those few seconds before it was on to shaking hands and prepping for the next game.
Wednesday was the essence of Marin Catholic softball under head coach Dave Albini, who was presented with recognition after the game after earning his 200th victory and being mobbed by players. Everyone played together, rallied together and always kept their heads high, even as San Rafael made one late, final push.
And the No. 13 Marin Catholic Wildcats (15-5), behind a 9-6 victory at No. 12 San Rafael (14-7) on Tuesday afternoon in San Rafael, are heading back to the Marin County Athletic League championship game versus Redwood at 6:30 p.m. Friday at San Marin High School in Novato.
Gracyn Lovette’s game-winning hit lifted Marin Catholic to the MCAL title in extra innings last year.
“Coming out of it on top feels really good, especially as a team,” said Marin Catholic sophomore Lauren Osheroff. “It was definitely a team effort today.”
Marin Catholic’s offense was in the zone, as Osheroff said the mindset changed a bit. They knew what they were looking for against a star San Rafael pitcher.
Which presented itself from the very first pitches. Boston College commit Sammy Horn drew a leadoff walk and Lindsay Harrison was hit by a pitch the following at-bat. Osheroff followed suit with a grounder that advanced the runner to third, then scoring Horn on a throwing error to go up 1-0 in the top of the first inning.
Anya Jaroszewski, a hero in last season’s MCAL semifinals meeting against San Rafael in extras, roped an RBI single that scored Harrison to extend the Marin Catholic lead to 2-0 before San Rafael ever stepped up to the plate.
Lily Cox escaped a jam in the bottom half on the mound to leave two runners on, then delivered a quick 1-2-3 second inning before Marin Catholic’s bats came alive once again in the top half of the third.
“We knew what we were looking for,” Osheroff said. “When we got our pitches, we attacked and we just executed when we needed to and were able to get a lot of runs.”
Anna Held’s RBI grounder, which scored Lovette in the fifth, added on to the masterpiece to seize a 5-0 lead before two more runs in the sixth crossed home plate on Harrison’s RBI sacrifice fly and later an error to take a commanding 7-0 road lead, just six outs away from clinching a fifth consecutive victory and league championship berth.
But San Rafael had other plans, especially sophomore superstar Sophia Everett, a .586 hitter with 18 extra-base hits whose first foul ball to right field indicated some sort of run was about to brew. Everett’s two-run single cut the deficit to 7-2.
Angel Amesa responded with a bases-clearing, three-run triple that brought San Rafael within 7-5 and got the entire San Rafael crowd onto its feet before another run crossed on an error to cap a six-run frame and make this a 7-6 ballgame.
All Marin Catholic needed was a deep breath, though,and it has been in this situation before, winning four one-run ballgames this season after taking two league playoff games and two North Coast Section playoff matchups in extra innings the previous campaign.
“We’ve played a lot of close games, especially last year when we played a ton of close games,” Harrison said. “We like to make it interesting, but we’re used to the pressure. I think we work great under pressure.”
Horn’s triple added to her marvelous career and game, as she was up to two hits and gave the Wildcats a perfect chance to score.
That they did, as Harrison – after doubling earlier – roped an RBI single to make it an 8-6 contest. Osheroff doubled to extend the advantage to 9-6 before Cox shut the door on any potential comeback with a 1-2-3 bottom of the seventh.
Harrison and Osheroff were both stars in this high-stakes affair, as Osheroff collected two doubles with two RBIs, while Harrison had a single, double and two RBIs.
“I’ve been really working on my mental game this season because it always goes up and down,” Harrison said. “Sometimes I just gotta focus on what pitches they’re going to give me. This game I was really thinking, ‘Okay, I’m just going to focus on something absolute and then I’;m going to focus on the ball.’”
For the year, Harrison has 17 doubles and 27 RBIs, while Osheroff is at seven doubles and 24 RBIs.
“I’ve been working on my swing and I’ve made a couple adjustments to my mechanics and my routine on deck,” Osheroff said. “I think that’s me translating my swing into the game. When I see a good pitch, I just have to execute my swing.”
Jaroszewski followed suit with two hits and two RBIs. Horn went 2-for-4 with a double. Held singled and drove in a run. Lovete, a two-time MCAL MVP in basketball and Division 1 basketball signee to Lehigh, stole one base.
San Rafael was led by Amesa’s three hits, three RBIs and one triple. Everett provided a two-run single, while Megan Murphy also drove in a run.
Next up for Marin Catholic, always a strong program this time of year, is the MCAL championship. San Rafael awaits its North Coast Section playoff seeding next week.
“I feel like we really get to know each other as a team,” Harrison said. “Instead of just a few people rallying each other here and there, we’re all getting each other rallied up. We just feel more as a team and we’re able to execute against pitchers we’ve already faced.”
