BY JAMIE HAZEL
The softball team has gotten off to a great start, punctuated by a win over 15th ranked St. Thomas Aquinas. The team currently sits at 11-4 overall and 6-3 in the competitive Red Division ahead of a rematch with South Plainfield this evening.
On April 25, the girls secured their biggest win of the season over St. Thomas Aquinas, who hadn’t lost to a Red Division opponent since 2019. “I knew we won the game when I threw the last pitch, and a grounder was hit to third,” said sophomore pitcher Gianna Lombardi, who only gave up three hits and one walk in her dominant performance. “Knowing how strong our defense is, I knew the out would be made.”
The Knights entered the final inning with a one-run lead, courtesy of Dimitra Milonopoulos. Senior Zoe Milonopoulos then provided what proved to be the winning runs when she hit a double, bringing her twin sister Dimitra and senior Savannah Martinez home. “It was all so surreal, but it wouldn’t have meant anything without my team on the bases,” explained Zoe Milonopoulos. “We had contributions from everyone.” Although St. Thomes scored on a home run in the bottom of the inning, the Knights held on for the win.
Last season, the girls lost to the Trojans 6-0 twice, so this win demonstrates the team’s improvement. “Our energy was up the entire game, and our coaches kept us pumped,” shared Dimitra Milonopoulos. “It really was the best experience ever.”
This win showed how hard the girls have worked, and warned other teams of the history they are ready to make this year. “We have been putting in so much time and work into preparing for games against them and it finally paid off,” shared Savannah Martinez.
The girls opened their season on April 4, defeating South Brunswick 12-2. At the top of the lineup, Dimitra Milonopoulos and Emma DiMartini both went two for two and combined to score three runs. “We had a game plan and executed it,” explained Accettulli, who also had a hit and scored a run. “I am so happy we won the first game of the season because it paved the way for the rest of the season.”
The next day, the team lost 1-0 to St. Thomas Aquinas, but this only motivated the girls to defeat them later in the season. “We’re always picking one another up and we’re almost like second family to one another,” explained DiMartini
They bounced right back on April 9 and beat Metuchen 5-4 in a tight game. Down by one run in the bottom of the seventh, Old Bridge loaded the bases, tied the game at four, and walked it off on an RBI single by Amanda Jupinka, who scored one run in the game and knocked in two. “Metuchen is one of the strongest opponents that Old Bridge has been unable to beat,” explained Zoe Milonopoulos, who has a hit in every single game this season. “It was a great game with contributions from everyone.”
The girls defeated Sayreville 2-1 before losing to South Plainfield 4-1 in their third game in three days. Even in the loss, the girls accomplished something positive as they scored the first run surrendered by South Plainfield this season on Zoe Milonopoulos’s first home run of the season. “I feel blessed that I am able to produce for my team and my school,” explained Zoe Milonopoulos, who homered again in the next game, a 3-0 win over Monroe on April 13.
The girls had a huge win on April 15 against Iselin Kennedy. The 11-1 game put Zoe Milonopoulos in the spotlight with a homerun, and freshman Kendall Riggleman pitched, surrendering just one run. The girls followed that with a 7-1 victory over JP Stevens, who beat them 4-3 last year.
Lombardi, who lowered her ERA from 4.47 last season to just 1.67 so far this year, struck out five hitters against JP Stevens. “I just kept working in the off season, and the defense is helping me a lot,” said Lombardi.
On April 18, the girls lost to Bordentown 11-6 despite homeruns by Savannah Martinez and Zoe Milonopoulos. The following day, they kept the bats hot and beat East Brunswick 12-4. The girls scored most of their runs early, finishing the third inning with a 9-3 lead.
Against East Brunswick, Martinez knocked in three runs and scored three, while Dimitra Milonopoulos had a single, a double, a triple, and four RBIs, continuing her current eight-game hitting streak. Dimitra says she does it by “always being confident and not letting negative thoughts get to me. I practice every single day, at least an hour or two a day.”
The Knights beat Colonia 6-2 on April 22. “Our warmup was great which definitely translated to the game!” shared pitcher Gianna Lombardi, who struck three girls out. “We had so much energy and we played a really clean game!”
The following day, the girls kept the three-day win streak with a 7-1 win against South Brunswick. Jaylen Campbell had a very good game with three hits and two RBI’s. “We had such a good start to the season. Everyone is so eager to win and do well, and it really shows,” explained Accettulli.
All these games paved the way for this season’s highlight, the St. Thomas Aquinas win. “We have been working so hard and we are all so proud that we played the way we did,” shared Lombardi. “We have been accomplishing great things this season, and I can’t wait to see what else we are capable of.”
The girls lost to Metuchen on April 27 before beating Woodbridge in a 1-0 duel yesterday. Today, they get a chance at revenge against South Plainfield on their home field at Mannino Park at 6pm.
Posted on 4/30/24
Photos by Katelyn Buchalter and Elisa Cioku
Knight Life 