St. Mary’s softball outlasts Ipswich, reaches D3 North semis

IPSWICH – It’s June. We’re in the state tournament. And St. Mary’s – like the Los Angeles Lakers and the Detroit Red Wings – always seems to be very much present in the middle of the mix.This year’s no different. The Spartan softball team, for the third straight year and the eighth time this decade, has made it at least as far as the Division 3 North semifinal. The Spartans punched their ticket to Martin Field in Lowell Tuesday with a 6-2 win at Ipswich, defeating star pitcher Kerry Desmond in the process.St. Mary’s will face Catholic Central League foe Marian Thursday at 3. The CCL has basically taken over this bracket, with North Shore Voke the only team of the four remaining from a different league (Austin Prep is the other one).Desmond wasn’t supposed to pitch Tuesday. The senior fireballer is still recovering from injuries suffered in an auto accident earlier this year.”But,” said coach Colleen Newbury, “she is a senior, she’s a leader, and she did her best for her team. I can’t say enough about her.”Newbury pulled out all the stops for this one, and it finally paid off, as the Spartans rode a four-run seventh inning to victory. But before it got that far, this was one dandy of a game.Desmond was on her game early, and so was the St. Mary’s tandem of Vanessa LaFauci and Sam Kiley. Hits were hard to come by, and if someone did get a piece of the ball, there was some outstanding leather thrown around on both sides.”Our pitching was awesome, and our defense was awesome,” acknowledged Newbury.Heroes abounded. Catcher Erin McAndrews knocked in the tying run with a single in the fifth inning – after she’d gone far up the third-base line an inning earlier to snag a strong throw from Maria Nazzaro in center, and then swept back to make the tag on a sliding Courtney Rosales to snuff out what would have been Ipswich’s third run.Nazzaro herself wore the laurel wreath as well. In addition to her assist, she had three hits and knocked in two runs, including the go-ahead run in the seventh.That run was an adventure in three acts. Brittany Hanscom led off the inning by getting the very definition of a seeing-eye single. It just bounded past about three different fielders before settling just behind second base.Pinch-runner Michelle Macchione stole second, and then beat the throw to third on Kristina Burri’s sacrifice. Burri never stopped running and landed on second.With the infield AND outfield in, Nazzaro – who was a table-setter both Saturday against Shawsheen and earlier Tuesday, got to sample the main course this time. She found a spot in between the fielders and looped one just behind second base that scored Macchione and sent Burri to third.Burri came home on Kristen Mondello’s grounder to short. And then, sophomore Angela Dandreo, pinch-hitting, blasted one over the left fielder’s head and made a trip around the bases for a two-run homer.”I’m happy for Maria,” said Newbury. “She’s really worked hard on her hitting. I’m happy for everyone. Kristina’s been hitting the ball right at people for two games and has nothing to show for it, so it was nice to see her in the middle of it, too.””I’m happy I was able to contribute,” said Nazzaro, a junior. “Last year, my hitting wasn’t so good, so I’m glad to be doing better this year.”St. Mary’s played from behind for five innings. Ipswich scored first, in the bottom of the first, when Krista MacKenzie tripled and scored on a groundout. St. Mary’s got that back in the third when Burri doubled down the left-field line and Nazzaro singled her in.Ipswich retook the lead in the fourth when Liz Glaven tripled over Nazzaro’s head and then scored on an errant throw.But St. Mary’s pulled even again in the fifth on a double by Nazzaro, who took third on an error, and McAndrews’ single.