By DAVE O’SULLIVAN
Staff Writer
On X @GDSullySays
VOORHEES — When Jenna Haas, Eastern Regional High’s senior catcher, came up to bat with two outs and a runner at second in a scoreless game in the bottom of the eighth, she knew she had to come through. The pitcher she caught all game, junior Sami Wakeley, had put together a brilliant performance, allowing just three hits and three walks while striking out 20 batters in eight innings.
It would have been a shame to waste that kind of effort in a loss, especially to rival Lenape.
Facing an 0-and-2 count, Haas dug in and took an outside fastball down the right-field line, chasing home Ryleigh Natale with the game’s only run as the Vikings walked off a 1-0 win to take control in the Olympic Conference’s American Division race. Eastern (11-1, 5-0 Olympic American) leads Lenape (7-5, 4-1) by a full game in the standings.
“I was just thinking, ‘confidence.’ Sami works so hard for this team so we just have to do our jobs to support her. I knew (Lenape reliever Noelle Beeler) was throwing the ball outside and I had to get my bat out there. I was catching, so I knew he was calling that outside pitch, so I knew I had to hit it,” Haas said. “Last year it was the same situation, it was our Senior Day and they beat us. We want to compete with the Lenapes and the Cherokees, we feel like we’re right up there with them.”
Wakeley worked out of a sticky situation in the top of the seventh, then put the Indians down in order in the top of the eighth, setting the stage for Haas’ heroics. Natale, Eastern’s leadoff hitter, blooped a one-out single to center and took second on a groundout by Wakeley. Three pitches later, the game was over.
Eastern coach Rich Gilmore said he believed that was the Vikings’ best opportunity to win the game, with his Nos. 3 and 4 hitters — Haas and Mya Torres — coming up.
“That was our best shot to win the game, 100 percent,” he said. “I was waiting for one of those two to just do something like that. We don’t need them to hit the ball over the fence or even to the fence. Jenna had a double earlier in the game on a ball that was just in the gap (and rolled to the fence). When you just poke it out there, good things can happen.”
The game was a classic pitcher’s duel, the likes of which are normally seen in the South Jersey Group 4 semifinals or finals. It had that kind of playoff feel to it, with Wakeley and Lenape starter Mackenzie Senechal ripping through the opponents’ lineups like a cheese grater. Senechal allowed just three hits in five innings while striking out five, and Beeler allowed just three baserunners in 2 2/3 innings of relief work.
But the day belonged to Wakeley, who now holds school records for single game, single season and career strikeouts. She’s fanned 41 batters in her last two outings, and on Friday against Lenape, 14 of the 15 possible outs through five innings came via the strikeout.
“(That performance) was absolutely insane,” Haas said. “It’s an honor to catch for her, she’s so talented. We knew their first four hitters were strong so we tried to get (Wakeley’s fastball) up there and rising. Luckily, that did the trick. There’s no doubt when Sami is pitching, we have complete confidence in her.”
“I worked out hard over the winter, got my rise ball working. I just came out (this season) mixing all my pitches, trusting what I was throwing,” Wakeley explained. “When I feel worse in warmups I actually do better. I was not feeling great today, but I guess I did OK. I just kept trusting my stuff. I know Jenna is there to back me up and if the ball does get hit, I know my defense is there for me. That makes it easier for me to trust my pitches.”
Said Gilmore, “I don’t want her to ever take offense when I say this about her, but she’s a bulldog (inside the circle). She’s such a competitor. She’s trusting what I’m calling, she’s working hard, and I don’t think she fears anybody — she just gets out there and does what she does. She’s been pitching with me as a freshman and she had a bunch of strikeouts that year. Last year was down a little bit, which usually happens with sophomores, but she got in the weight room, got stronger and she has tons of confidence right now. And I think having Jenna behind the plate really builds her confidence. They talk about what’s working, what’s not working. They have a lot of good communication.”
Eastern has only had a couple of close games so far this season, so Gilmore was happy his team got some really tough competition before the calendar flips to May.
“Their pitchers threw very well. They kept us off balance and kept us from getting solid contact. Their whole team played very well. They were coming in here facing one of the best pitchers in the area. This is a big win,” he said. “Since I took over, we haven’t beaten Lenape. And like I told coach, these are the games you want because these get you battle tested for the playoffs. These are fun — stressful, but fun. We want to play in these types of games so we’re ready for the postseason. You’re going to face top pitchers in the playoffs and you’re probably not going to score a lot of runs, so you have to figure out how to get it done. We’ve had a couple games where we’ve figured out how to get it done.”
“We just came back from a tough loss against PVI and last year we had a couple tough losses against Lenape, so for us to come out here and beat them is big for us,” Wakeley said. “We just have to focus on staying hot and keeping each other up. If we do that, we’ll be OK.”
WHAT’S NEXT: Eastern hosts Cherokee on Monday at 3:45 p.m. Lenape beat Cherry Hill East, 11-0, today, and faces the Cougars again on the road on Tuesday at 3:45 p.m.
