Softball: St. Joseph defeats Trumbull to gain final

The top-seeded St. Joseph softball team defeated fourth-seeded Trumbull High, 6-1 in the FCIAC tournament semifinals at Sacred Heart University on Wednesday. With the win, the Cadets will take on No. 6 Stamford in Thursday’s title game, a rematch of last year’s pinnacle battle. First pitch at Pioneer Park is set for 5 p.m. Standout pitcher Nicole Williams struck out 10 batters and got all of the offensive support she would need in the opening inning, when Kayla Giacobbe knocked in the game’s first two runs with a single. “It puts the pressure on the other team,” St. Joe’s coach Jeff Babineau said of the early run support for his pitcher. “Nicole came to play. She hit her spots very, very well,” Babineau said. “She held a very good-hitting team down — definitely pitched very well.” Trumbull coach Jacqui Sheftz agreed. “Nicole’s a very good pitcher,” Sheftz said. “We knew it was important for us to get out of the first inning. That didn’t happen.” Trumbull pitcher Ally Szabo pitched quite well. Szabo settled in and kept it a 2-0 game until the bottom of the fifth inning, when the Cadets put up four runs. Williams helped her own cause, driving in a pair of runs when she launched a high fly that landed in deep left for a double. Courtney Holden’s RBI groundout made it 5-0 and pinch hitter Allie Petronchak’s single plated the sixth run. The fifth-inning rally began with a leadoff walk by Hanna Hutchison. Melissa Bike then drilled a line drive single to center, before Jovanna Hillman worked a walk to load the bases. That set the table for Williams. Trumbull’s Taylor Brown, who tripled in the second inning, drove in Szabo, who had walked, in the sixth inning. Despite falling, the Eagles can take away something positive. “The experience we gained today is really important to what we’re going to do in the future,” Sheftz said.

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