‘Peaking at the plate’ key to success for SD softball team

By Lisa Capitelli Managing Editor

(May 12, 2023) The Stephen Decatur softball team earned the No. 1 seed and a first-round bye in the MPSSAA 3A South Region II.

The Lady Seahawks (16-2) will host the winner of Thursday’s No. 4 Arundel Wildcats vs. No. 5 Chesapeake Cougars on Monday at 4 p.m.

After the final game of the season against the Easton Warriors last Wednesday, he said, “… by like the third inning or so we kind of got loosened up and started putting some hits back-to-back and the girls really started to come together like they have been playing. Those last three innings were some of our best hitting all year … all solid line drives, everyone was striking the ball well, running hard, just making good decisions and that’s all you can ask for …” sophomore Ethan Cowder placed second in the 3,200-meter relay race (9:03.70).

Cowder, Justice and sophomores Alex Ward and James Uebel came in fourth in the 1,600-meter relay event (3:50.40).

Manuel, seniors Logan Bradshaw and Jaden Holland, and sophomore Donovan Henry took fifth in the 800meter relay race (1:39.04).

Holland, Uebel, Manuel and Bradshaw finished sixth in the 400-meter relay race (47.21 seconds).

Parkside won the girls’ competition, tallying 165 points. Wicomico was runner-up with 145 points, followed by James M. Bennett (107), Snow Hill (90), Washington (78) and Decatur (60).

Decatur athletes who scored points for the team for placing in the top eight were: senior Mayah Garner (high jump, sixth, 4 feet 6 inches), juniors Tiara McDonald (400-meter dash, fourth, 1:06.16), Macy Woroniecki (3,200-meter run, third, 12:47; 800-meter run, third, 2:38), Sauna Vick (300-meter hurdles, seventh, 55.39 seconds), Lexi Kliphouse (discus, seventh, 63 feet 9 inches) and Adelaide Weber (discus, eighth, 63 feet), sophomore Alessandra Fernandez (1,600-meter run, eighth, 6:49.50), and freshmen Lotus Wise (long jump, second, 15 feet 4 inches; triple jump, second, 31 feet 2.5 inches; 200-meter dash, fifth, 27.09 seconds), Ellie Cheynet (800-meter run, eighth, 2:46.40) and Mackenzie Purnell (shot put, eighth, 28 feet 2 inches).

McDonald, Wise, Garner and sophomore Peyton Redmond took fourth in the 800-meter relay race (1:56.82).

Woroniecki, Cheynet, McDonald and sophomore Nevaeh Horton placed fourth in the 1,600-meter relay event (4:40.40).

Vick, Redmond, Garner and freshman Jordan Carrigan crossed the finish line seventh overall in the 400-meter relay race (55.57 seconds).

All the Bayside Conference schools – from the north and south – will come together for a meet today, Friday, at 12:30 p.m. in Cambridge.

“I am continuing to make a few adjustments in events going into the conference and regional meets as I still have a few athletes jockeying for position in events,” Hommel said earlier this week. “This is great to see at this point in the season because it is an indication of passion for the sport and willingness to push themselves to their potential. I expect to see some of our best performances of the season at the Bayside Conference meet, which I will be quite happy with.”

Scott Kurtz

“We will need to be peaking at the plate to be successful in our region,” said Decatur Coach Scott Kurtz. “Obviously, we want to pitch well, defend well, limit mistakes, but a run at states will come down to our hitting. Gotta score runs to win.”

Kurtz thought the Seahawks finished the regular season playing well.

He said the group will focus on sustaining that into the playoffs.

The goal, he added, is to get through the region and back to states.

Decatur won the program’s first regional title since 1991 last year. The Berlin squad finished in the top four in the MPSSAA 3A state tournament, falling to Chopticon, 14-0, in the semifinals, in 2022.