CLYDE — Megan Bashak has said she’s disappointed in her senior softball season. Elyria’s No. 1 pitcher the past two years was sidelined briefly by two broken fingers on her pitching hand — her left — when she was injured in practice last month.
While she was able to return to the lineup after a couple of weeks, Bashak was unable to pitch for a more extended period. So, you can understand her disappointment if you look at her only as a pitcher.
But Bashak is and always has been a good hitter and she has been starting in left field and batting cleanup of late. It was her leadoff double in the second inning that got the top-ranked Pioneers (26-1) off dead center on Wednesday and on their way to a 1-0 win over North Royalton.
With another timely piece of hitting, junior right fielder Sarah Bracey sent Bashak home when she followed with a single to left. It was all Elyria needed.
No way you can be disappointed in the outcome of this Division I regional semifinal unless you happened to be pulling for the Lady Bears (21-7). They were appearing in a softball regional for only the second time in the history of the program.
“Ah, that felt nice,” Bashak said of her big double. “I actually saw the ball pretty good and just swung at it. Not being able to pitch is kind of a drag, but at least I can play. I’m hitting and it helps the team out.”
Bracey, for her part, just wanted to get the ball past the Bears’ infield.
“I knew if it stayed in the infield, they would probably get me out because I’m not the fastest person in the world,” said Bracey. “I thought if I could get it over the infield, Megan would definitely score because she’s fast.”
Bashak and Bracey combined to send the Pioneers into a regional final for the fourth straight year. They will meet either Toledo St. Ursula or Holland Springfield on the same diamond at noon Saturday for another spot in the Division I Final Four. Springfield and St. Ursula meet in another Clyde semifinal at 5 p.m. today.
The victory means three Lorain County teams will be playing in regional finals on Saturday. Division II Keystone posted a 7-0 win over Canal Winchester in Bucyrus on Wednesday and Division III Wellington defeated Pymatuning Valley, 11-5, in Massillon.
The Pioneers, who were state runners-up the past two years, haven’t lost a regional title game since 2005 when St. Ursula pinned a 2-1 defeat on them. St. Ursula was the defending state champion.
Elyria got another strong pitching job — a 12-strikeout two-hitter — from junior Tess Sito. Believe it or not, considering those numbers, Sito did not have her best outing. She walked three North Royalton batters — two on four pitches — fell behind in the count 13 times and went to a full count four times. She threw 103 pitches.
“Today was not an awesome day, but if I can still win on an off day you wonder what we can do on an on day,” Sito said.    
“You know, Tess didn’t have total command today,” Pioneers coach Ken Fenik said. “This has to be the most people she’s walked all year. But I’m very proud of Tess because she stayed with it. Every day she grows as a pitcher and a player. That’s what we try to do here, get people to get a little better each day.”
The Pioneers found themselves in two tight spots. The Bears put runners at first and second with one out in the third, but Sito retired the next two batters, one with her sixth strikeout. And North Royalton had a runner at third — pitcher Lauren Balodis, who tripled — with one out in the sixth. Sito fanned the next batter and got the next to ground routinely to Jessica Mandula at second.
“That was pretty nerve-wracking because we knew their next two hitters were pretty good,” Elyria catcher Jen Bower said. “But we got them. I don’t remember what pitches I called, but probably not the drop, because that’s what happened at Brunswick.”
Brunswick handed the Pioneers their only defeat of the season, 1-0, when a runner scored from third on a wild pitch — a dropball called by Bower.
“We were in some pressure situations,” Bower said. “But it’s good that Tess and our team got through it.”
The Pioneers had four hits off Balodis, two for extra bases. The first was Bashak’s leadoff double in the second inning. The other was a ringing triple to center by sophomore Ashlee Stolarski with two out in the fifth. Sito and Bracey singled.

In order to comment, you must agree to our user agreement and discussion guidelines.

Need help? Email Us.