By Mike Clark
The softball rivalry between Young and Lane is a friendly one.
After Monday afternoon’s matchup at Horner Park, players for the Dolphins — who won 2-1 — and Champions were chatting and taking selfies.
“I know a lot of girls from Lane just like from (being) friends and playing 10U ball,” Young freshman pitcher Liani Delgado said.
That makes for some bragging rights for Delgado, who pitched a four-hitter and drove in both runs for the Dolphins (6-5, 1-0 Public League Red).
“Definitely,” she said with a smile. “I’m going to be riding home with one of the Lane girls and she’s going to hear all about it.”
Delgado struck out nine, walked one and hit one batter en route to improving to 2-3. She displayed a newly expanded array of pitches in holding down the Champions (6-5, 1-1).
“I only used to have two pitches, my (fastball) and (changeup),” Delgado said. “But once I started to accumulate more pitches, I like to mix it up. Now it’s just (my) bread and butter.”
Young coach Mike Hinrichs expected Delgado, sophomores Emily Rodriguez and Sarah Alvarez and senior Nyah Allen to be an effective pitching staff and that’s proven to be true.
“It’s nice to have that kind of depth,” Hinrichs said.
On Monday, the Dolphins didn’t need anyone other than Delgado in the circle.
“She was hot, so we were going to ride her as far as we could,” Hinrichs said. “She can throw four or five pitches for strikes.
“She was kind of forced to grow up a little quicker than we anticipated when we were in Florida (over spring break). She pitched against some high-quality opponents that were (almost) all seniors.”
Delgado’s pitching opponent on Monday was Lane senior Sierra Sikora. They both play with the same travel ball organization: the Chicago-based Blue Thunder.
They matched zeros till the top of the fourth, when Young turned two errors, a sacrifice and Delgado’s two-out, two-run single into a 2-0 lead.
“I was looking for that pitch,” Delgado said. “It was inside, low. That’s usually what I hit.”
Lane got a run back in the sixth when Grace Brobson led off with a single to right, stole second and scored on Hannah Roeder’s RBI single to left.
But Delgado shut down Lane after that and the Dolphins picked up the key league win.
They host Taft next Monday in another important test; Young, Lane and Taft have established themselves as the Public League’s elite teams in recent years.
Sikora went the distance and allowed just three hits — two to Allen — while striking out five and walking one. She was coming off a 2-1 win against Taft on Saturday after also pitching earlier in the day against powerhouse Barrington.
“She’s really battled some tough teams the past few days,” Lane coach Samantha Meinken said.
Young, Lane and Taft likely aren’t done with each other this season. They figure to be on a collision course in the Public League playoffs and all are assigned to the same Class 4A sectional.
“It’s just kind of like, ‘Hey, we’re going to see them again and we need to adjust the next time we do see them wherever that may be,'” Meinken said.
Photos by Zara Linneman/Whitney Young Senior
