Alincic, Mt. Pleasant softball post ‘extra special’ shutout over Indiana
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Tuesday, April 10, 2018 | 9:03 PM
Mt. Pleasant officials and fans recognized the Vikings softball team for their PIAA championship before the team's home opener Tuesday. It was one last in-house christening of the school's only state title team, and it included a look at the new banner beneath the scoreboard in right field.
The top-ranked Vikings then proceeded to put together a performance worthy of their laurels as they start the ignition on a title defense.
Junior pitcher Carolyn Alincic struck out 12 in a three-hit shutout, and freshman Hailey Brunson and senior Chloe Poulich each tripled as the Vikings downed Indiana, 8-0, in a WPIAL Section 1-4A game.
Indiana, playing its first road game of the young season, was responsible for two of Mt. Pleasant's three losses last season.
Vikings coach Lauren Armanious said the win felt “extra special,” not because of the pregame recognition or the simple fact the team actually played a game but because of what happened last year. Mt. Pleasant was 17-1 against teams other than Indiana.
“I thought our girls did very well, especially for it being the home opener,” Armanious said. “It's only been our second time actually out on dirt, so they're still fresh to it. Our pitcher and catcher did very well. That battery worked really well together.”
Brunson, a Louisiana-Lafayette recruit, delivered a bases-clearing, three-run triple during a five-run fourth inning for the Vikings (2-0, 2-0).
Poulich, a Towson recruit, got the rally started with a run-scoring triple to deep center to make it 4-0.
When she is on her game, Alincic doesn't need many runs.
An 8-0 lead was a bonus and Indiana's chances were fleeting.
Alincic brought some glove-popping heat on a chilly, cloud-covered afternoon. Still not fully recovered from injuries suffered in a November car accident that also involved her parents, Alincic hid any discomfort well. She mowed down hitters with crisp control in a number of quick, efficient at-bats where she didn't fall behind in counts.
She struck out nine of the first 13 batters Indiana (2-1, 1-1) sent to the plate.
“It was a struggle because my concussion kept me out for a month or two,” Alincic said. “I have a lot of problems in my (shoulder) muscles right now, but I am getting back to it and I'm feeling a lot better. Hopefully, I am back to 100 percent within the next couple weeks.
“Today was a mix of all my pitches. I have been pitching a lot, every day, for the past month or two so it's nice to see it pay off.”
Freshman Hannah Gnibus added a run-scoring single in the fourth to score Poulich, and senior Christiana Czegan singled to right, for her second hit, and stole second. After a walk loaded the bases, Brunson tripled to make it 8-0.
Mt. Pleasant left 10 on base, which was something Armanious underscored, albeit begrudgingly.
“We always have things to work on,” Armanious said. “There are a few things here and there we talked about in our after-game huddle. Minor things. With every game, you can always pick something to do better at or to fix, or to add. We're no different than any other team, we always want to achieve higher and have a better game every time we play.”
Mt. Pleasant, after loading the bases and coming up empty in the first, did not let it happen again in the second.
Two walks and a double by Alyssa Keslar had the bags full again and Poulich's wind-steered pop-up to left hit the tip of freshman Gia Cosentino's glove and fell in, allowing three runs to score.
Freshman Sara Zimmerman finally got a hold of an Alincic fastball and drove it off the top of the center-field fence for a triple in the fourth. But the Indians could not score.
Sophomore Alexis Bonatch doubled for the Indians in the fifth, and Zimmerman singled in the seventh but potential rallies were sawed off, either by Alincic strikeouts or well-fielded grounders.
“It's nice because I know if I give up a hit, they're going to get it, or if I give up a run, they're going to get it back the next inning,” Alincic said. “It's a really big cushion for me.”
Bill Beckner Jr. is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at bbeckner@tribweb.com or via Twitter @BillBeckner.
Tags: Indiana, Mt. Pleasant
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