Ahearn helping youthful O’Hara reload on the fly

CONCORD >> When a softball team loses two All-Delco infielders to graduation, that’s often a signal that a rebuilding phase is imminent.

For Cardinal O’Hara, starting from scratch doesn’t appear to be the case in 2018. The Lions have a team that’s pretty solid across the board and should only improve as the days go by. In two games, they have scored 32 runs.

Not a bad start, huh?

“We lost some really good players,” junior pitcher Jenna Smith said Friday after throwing a complete game with three strikeouts in a 15-2 thumping of Garnet Valley, “but our new players are really good, too.”

The Lions do not have a senior on the team this season. Allison Ahearn, Grace Hussey, Julia Kush, Smith, Alexis Galli and Sami Randazzo are among the returning players who gained varsity experience over the last two years.

“A lot of us have been playing together for a while, even though we are still a young team,” said Ahearn, O’Hara’s slugging first baseman. “We jelled really well today, and that’s a really good sign.

“A lot of us juniors have to step up. What we had last year, I mean, we lost our main hitters in Annemarie (Banes) and Maura (Kane), but we have new girls stepping in and they are going to keep getting better.”

The Lions (2-0) batted around twice Friday and won in five innings. Ahearn had a big day with three hits, including a two-run ground rule double in the second inning. She had five RBIs.

Ahearn took the double the opposite way to deep left field. Had the ball not trickled under the outfield fence, Ahearn would’ve had a bases-clearing triple. But in a game that O’Hara clearly owned, Ahearn was OK settling for the two-bagger instead.

Ahearn expects to be a vital part in the middle of the order this season.

“It’s a little bit of pressure (hitting cleanup), but I just try to relax and execute my goal,” Ahearn said. “I just need to move up the runners.”

The Lions were patient against freshman pitcher Maison Logan, who was making her first varsity start for Garnet Valley. Jags ace Becca Halford threw more than 100 pitches in Thursday’s loss to Ridley and was unavailable for Friday’s nonleague contest. O’Hara worked 16 bases on balls against GV pitching.

Looking to just get through the day, GV coach George White called upon All-Delco junior Lindsey Hunt from her position at third base. Hunt, a Drexel commit, is one of the best softball players in the area. She has power to all fields and is a tremendous athlete. A catcher by trade, Hunt got the game’s final five outs Friday. It marked the first time Hunt had ever pitched in a meaningful game.

She walked a few, and gave up a couple of runs and hits, but Hunt hung in there and took one for the team.

“We’re a young team and we have to bring some freshmen up to play on varsity,” White said. “I know with the weather that everyone is kind of in the same boat, not being able to play outside, but it’s been tough. Today, not having Becca available, we put our freshman (Logan) in a tough spot. We come back Monday and Wednesday next week and we’ll hope to win those games. We’ll be alright.”

As for Smith, she has focused on improving her pitching repertoire. In two games, she has looked sharp as she takes the next step in her development this season.

“We started working on the changeup and that’s pretty good now. My best pitches are probably the curve and the screw,” she said. “As a team we have a pretty good bond. A lot of us were on the same team last year so we all know each other pretty well.”

Hussey, the Lions’ leadoff hitter, coaxed five walks and scored four runs. Kush supplied a single, two RBIs and three walks. Slap-hitting sophomore Maggie Loomis had three walks and a sacrifice fly. Junior newcomer Alyssa Daly singled twice and scored three runs, while freshman Julia Mirarchi chipped in with a single and two runs.

Freshman Annie Bechtold laced a single to knock in both of Garnet Valley’s runs. Audrey Shenk added a double and a run scored.