Lady Jets advance to semis

Defending Nassau Class AA softball champion East Meadow didn’t close the regular season on the strongest of notes, dropping four of five Conference AA-I games including a 10-2 pounding at the hands of visiting Mepham May 6.

But the playoffs offered a fresh start for the Lady Jets, who showed they aren’t about to give up the title without a fight.

Two impressive freshmen pitchers — East Meadow’s Kerri Shapiro and Mepham’s Toni Marie Valeriano — combined for 11 scoreless innings in Monday’s quarterfinal round matchup before switch-hitting junior Becky Syers smacked a three-run double in the bottom of the sixth to propel the fourth-seeded Lady Jets to a 3-1 victory.

Syers hit a 1-2 pitch from Valeriano to deep left, driving home sophomore Danielle Cutuli, senior Jamie Laird and freshman Madison West. Fifth-seeded Mepham, which knocked off No. 12 Baldwin in last Friday’s opening round, staged a considerable threat in the seventh and had a run in with bases loaded and none out before Shapiro shut the door.

“It’s a tough situation for anyone, especially a freshman,” East Meadow coach Cindy McCarthy said of the last-inning predicament Shapiro faced. “She showed a lot of poise coming back to finish it off.”

Shapiro, who made one regular-season start and several relief appearances, allowed four hits, walked seven and struck out 12, including senior Kristan Taylor for the final out. Three of Shapiro’s walks came in the seventh.

“We had opportunities to score,” Lady Pirates coach Mike Muscara said. “It’s disappointing. We just didn’t get a hit when we needed it. Both pitchers had strong games.”

Valeriano gave up seven hits, walked only one and struck out four. She pitched out of trouble in the second when Shapiro and Syers reached on singles, and was one out away from getting out of the sixth before plunking West with a pitch to bring Syers to the plate.

“Becky drives the ball better from the right side, and her swing looked great all day,” McCarthy said of Syers. “I thought as a whole we saw and hit the ball a lot better than the last time we played them.”

East Meadow (10-6) advanced to face top-seeded MacArthur in the semifinals at Mitchel Athletic Complex on Thursday at 4 p.m. The teams split meetings during the regular season, with each winning on the road. The Lady Jets won 10-9 at MacArthur April 7 behind a Laird grand slam, while the Lady Generals took the rematch, 5-3, May 9, as pitcher Kristen Brown aided her own cause with a homer.

“We didn’t play our best down the stretch, but the girls ultimately know we have a great team capable of beating anyone,” McCarthy said.