When Madison senior Kristin Giery approached the plate in the first inning of her softball team’s home game against Woodgrove on Saturday, she did not let her moment go to waste.
With zero outs and senior Cat Arase on second base, Warhawks Coach Jim Adkins was prepared to play small ball to get Arase to third. But he gave his power-hitting first baseman one shot to make a bang.
“Coach told me: ‘You’re going to get one pitch, and then I’m going to bunt you,’” Giery said. “So I got up there swinging my hardest.”
Giery crushed the first pitch of the at-bat over the fence in left-center field for a home run, and No. 1 Madison went on to beat then-No. 2 Woodgrove 5-0.
By capitalizing on that opportunity, Giery helped power the Warhawks to victory and helped them maintain their perfect 15-0 record. And she was not the only one to seize an opportunity this week.
South Lakes has flirted with the Top 10 all season, and the Seahawks have finally jumped into the fray after shutting out then-No. 6 McLean 7-0 on Friday.
Senior pitcher Aly Rayle continued her dominant season with 14 strikeouts, while team batting average leader Margaret Vicheck went 1-for-1 with two walks and two runs. Sierra Shuman went 2-for-3 with a double, a triple and two runs.
South Lakes enters a week packed with challenges, including three away games against Langley, Washington-Lee and Herndon plus a home game against Madison at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, but the Seahawks already have proved themselves worthy competitors.
1. Madison (15-0) Last ranked: 1
The Warhawks continued to tear through their schedule with two shutouts last week: 11-0 against Chantilly on Thursday and then 5-0 against Woodgrove on Saturday.
2. Northwest (11-0) LR: 3
The Jaguars also added two more shutouts to their collection last week: Their fifth of the season came Thursday in a 15-0 romp over Seneca Valley, then their sixth came Saturday in a 6-0 blanking of Damascus.
3. Sherwood (11-0) LR: 4
The Warriors continue to keep pace with Northwest in Maryland 4A, so mark the Montgomery County rivals’ May 7 matchup on your calendar.
4. Blair (12-1) LR: 7
After losing their first game of the season on April 21, the Blazers rebounded with two blowout wins, 20-0 against Walter Johnson and 16-0 win against Magruder.
5. Huntingtown (15-2) LR: 5
The Hurricanes fell 2-1 in eight innings Thursday to La Plata, the only team that has gotten the better of Huntingtown this season.
6. Woodgrove (12-2) LR: 2
After an 11-0 start to the season, the Wolverines stumbled last week with losses to Loudoun County and Madison.
7. Stone Bridge (11-1) LR: 8
Bulldogs junior Emily Sappington recorded three hits, three RBI and a home run in Saturday’s 11-6 win against Langley.
8. South Lakes (13-2) LR: NR
Senior pitcher Aly Rayle struck out 14 in a 7-0 shutout against McLean on Friday. The University of Virginia signee has 190 strikeouts this season.
9. Northern (12-2) LR: NR
The Patriots trailed by one run in extra innings but scored two in the bottom of the eighth inning to take a 6-5 victory over Chopticon last Monday, which allowed them to claim the Braves’ spot in the rankings.
10. McLean (14-3) LR: 6
The Highlanders fell to two Liberty District opponents: 3-2 against Yorktown and 7-0 against South Lakes.
Dropped out: No. 9 Freedom (8-4), No. 10 Chopticon (13-3)
On the bubble: Bishop O’Connell (18-4), Bishop McNamara (15-5), Loudoun Valley (11-2)