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Wolverines, Noles seal softball titles

3 min read

The Cape Coral Little League Major Softball championship featured two pitchers battling to outlast the other.

Mallory Gerrero of the Wildcats and Darian Leschewski of the Wildcats showed the true grit and determination that wins championships. Both pitched a complete game.

The six-inning game lasted 2 1/2 hours Friday night at Burton Park and saw 33 runs scored. In the end, Leschewski outbattled Gerrero to earn the win and the championship title for the Wolverines 19-14.

The Wolverines were undefeated through the tournament behind ace pitcher Meghan Sullivan, strong No. 2 pitching by Leschewski, and aggressive bats that manager Brian Sullivan said would bring them the championship no matter which pitcher they faced.

Only thing he didn’t predict was the Wildcats’ determination. Trailing 8-7 going into the fifth inning, the Wildcats finally tired Leschewski. With their coaches sporting rally caps, the Wildcats brought six runs across the plate to take the lead for the first time. Four runs were scored on bases-loaded walks.

The Wildcats possessed a 13-11 lead going into the final inning. It appeared the two teams would have to face each other again in order to determine the winner, due to the double-elimination format, but the clutch hitting the Wolverines’ coach had bragged about resurfaced in the sixth inning.

Victoria Fields hit a blooper to left field that scored a run, and Leschewski helped her own cause by drawing a walk that brought the tying run across the plate. Sullivan slammed a double to center field that scored two and regained the lead for the Wolverines.

The Wildcats made a couple of errors in the final inning which produced the final four runs and gave Leschewski a 19-13 edge. She abandoned thoughts of her tired arm, her previous bases-loaded walks and focused on finishing the final task at hand — retiring three batters without allowing six runs to cross home plate.

She allowed only one run the final inning and illustrated why she is, according to her coach, the best No. 2 pitcher in the league. She was the survivor — ready to outwill, outlast, and outplay.

Wolverines 332 038 — 19

Wildcats 222 161 — 14

W — Leschewski. L — Gerrero.

In the senior softball championship game Friday night, the Seminoles upended the previously undefeated Tigers for the second night in a row.

The Tigers had gone through all of the regular season, Lee County Tournament and this tournament undefeated until the Seminoles claimed a 5-4 victory Thursday night to force a second championship game. The Noles, who had lost to the Tigers 6-1 in the semifinal round, claimed the title with a 16-2 triumph.