By Joseph Staszewski
Bayside’s bats and hearts had pushed them through adversity all season — but couldn’t take the Commodores any further.
The Commodores, who rallied from seven runs down after two innings in the quarterfinals, faced a three-run deficit in the bottom of the eighth to Tottenville in Bayside’s first semifinal since 2008.
Bayside kept fighting in the PSAL Class A softball semifinals by playing for Coach Steve Piorkowski, who is battling to keep his cancer in remission. The Commodores loaded the bases with no one out as Emily Gomez walked and her sister Heidi Gomez and Jacqueline Perno singled.
But No. 2-seeded Bayside managed just a run on a Cortney Hafkin single. The bottom of the order couldn’t deliver in an eventual 5-3 loss to No. 3 Tottenville Saturday at the College of Staten Island. The defeat ended the careers of nine seniors who desperately wanted to bring home a city title.
“Every single game we knew not to go down without having a fight,” Pace-bound second baseman Tara Bernstein said. “We played for [Coach] P. this year, we played for each other. We picked each other up as much as we could until the very last out.”
Piorkowski gambled in the top of the eighth. Heidi Gomez appeared ready to strand Tottenville’s Nicole Bellini on second base after a sac bunt and fly out, but Piorkowski chose to let Gomez pitch to Jillian Regan, Tottenville’s best hitter.
The shortstop, who had the dangerous Jamie Holmes hitting behind her, had flied out to the left field fence in her last at-bat. Piorkowski called it a “no-win situation.” Regan singled brought home the go-ahead run, Holmes followed with a double and Kerrianne Lavin singled to make it 5-2.
“I rolled the dice and I lost,” Piorkowski said.
His team had found itself down early in the game. Tottenville (18–1) scored twice in the first as Regan and Holmes drove in runs. Bayside (17–2) saw Bellini make two diving grabs in center during the first two innings, but the Commodores managed to chip away at Tottenville’s lead.
A single by Perno, who was 2-for-4, plated Emily Gomez to make it 2-1 in the third. Bernstein doubled and later scored on a shallow sac fly to the grass behind second base by Victoria Perez to knot things at 2-2.
“I know they have very good arms,” Bernstein said. “I just wanted to test them.”
The Commodores weren’t as lucky next time. Piorkowski tried to score Cynthia Ponce as the go-ahead run from first on a double to the left centerfield fence by his eighth-hitter Hafkin. Tottenville tagged her out well before home plate thanks to a perfect relay.
“If she was running on the baseline and stayed on the baseline, which we practice, it would have been good,” Piorkowski said.
Bayside had a chance to rally, thanks to Heidi Gomez. She allowed just two hits from the second to the seventh innings and retired 17 of the 20 batters she faced, including 12 straight at one point.
“I realized this could be my last time wearing this uniform,” she said. “I just focused.”
The Commodores’ seniors said they have been waiting four years for this game after coming in as what Piorkowski called “goofy middle school kids.” They proved they belonged with the likes of the Pirates, but were unable to top them.
“We knew Tottenville was an exemplary team,” Bernstein said. “We knew what we had to do to win, but we just fell short. We put up a great fight.”
