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Around the Diamond: Hot bats keep hits coming for Totino Grace softball

By David La Vaque, Star Tribune, 04/26/11, 9:37PM CDT

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Andover baseball rebounds

Through six games this season, undefeated Totino-Grace has scored at least 10 runs each time. In fact, the Eagles have pounded five of their foes into submission in less than seven innings because of softball’s 10-run mercy rule.

“It’s probably the best hitting team we’ve had,” Eagles coach Paul Harrington said. “Every inning we believe we have a chance to score runs.”

Already the team’s pitching ace, Erica Meyer ignites the Totino-Grace lineup from her leadoff position. Her .682 batting average and 13 runs scored are tops on the team.

Meyer and No. 2 hitter Tessa Oberle (10 runs scored) set the table for teammates in the No. 3 through No. 6 spots. All four players, Jordan Rice, Caroline Ponessa, Nicole Rogers and Jessi Tyminski, boast batting averages of at least .350 (including Rogers at .667) and eight RBI. Rogers and Tyminski share the team lead with two home runs.

Shannon McFarlane is hitting .474 in the No. 7 spot.

“The pitching and defense we’re seeing will get tougher,” Harrington said. “But these girls have a lot of confidence in themselves and each other.”

Andover baseball rebounds

Andover’s promising 4-1 start to the baseball season threatened to come unglued in a 13-4 loss to Maple Grove last week. But Huskies coach Don Gawreluk described the loss as “a bump in the road that we have already moved on from.”

The staples of the Huskies’ success, pitching, defense and timely hitting were absent in the loss.

“A lot of coaches are left scratching their heads when they’re done facing them,” Gawreluk said of the Crimson. “They scored 12 of their 13 runs against us, I believe, with two outs. After the game, we addressed the issue of closing out innings.”

Andover shook off the ill effects of the loss right away, defeating Blaine 5-3 one day later. The Huskies jumped to a 5-0 lead after four innings and endured a three-run sixth inning by Blaine.

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