Bethpage plays small ball, beats Glen Cove in first round of Nassau Class AA softball playoffs
Elizabeth Hoffner #33 of Bethpage, left, gets congratulated by teammate Leah Coscino #21 after scoring in the bottom of the fourth inning to give the Golden Eagles a 2-1 lead over Glen Cove in a Nasaau County Class AA softball first round playoff game at Bethpage High School on Tuesday, May 14, 2024. Credit: James Escher
Bunting can be an overlooked skill, but for Bethpage's softball team it became a key ingredient in a winning formula.
No. 8 Bethpage scored two runs as the result of sacrifice bunts in the fourth inning as it defeated visiting No. 9 Glen Cove, 2-1, in the first round of the Nassau Class AA playoffs on Tuesday night.
Julia Coscino drew a walk to lead off the fourth and gave way to courtesy runner Keira O’Shea. Elizabeth Hoffner singled in the next at-bat, setting the stage for Julia’s older sister, Leah Coscino. Leah dropped down a bunt, resulting in an errant throw that allowed O’Shea to score the tying run.
“Every practice we do bunting,” Rylee Petruskie said. “Coach gets on us about it. We practice the defense for it too, making sure we can field it from any spot.”
With runners on second and third and one out, Toni Cassese dropped down a bunt which was fielded by the third baseman, who chased Hoffner back toward third. Leah had made her way to third, leaving two runners at the base and was tagged out heading back to second. As the tag was made, Hoffner broke for home and scored the go-ahead run.
“I was getting a big release, and when I slid into third, I saw Leah’s feet and freaked out,” Hoffner said. “When she ran back and the throw went to second, I sprinted home.”
Brooke Simmons drove in Glen Cove’s only run on a single, scoring Sara Roditi in the third inning. Petruskie settled in from there, retiring 11 of the final 12 batters. The only hit the sophomore allowed during that stretch was in the sixth to Simmons, before inducing a double play to end the inning.
“I try to not let anything get into my head,” Petruskie said. “I don’t get stressed but obviously there’s a bit more pressure when you’re down. Nothing too major, can’t let it get to you.”
Simmons was strong for Glen Cove (11-7), finishing with nine strikeouts and limiting the damage on multiple occasions. The sophomore escaped bases-loaded, one-out jams in the second and fifth innings.
Hoffner doubled in the second and was the only Golden Eagle with multiple hits.
“She has a good rise and she was working outside, so I kept that in mind,” Hoffner said. “I knew we were trailing, I just needed to get a piece of one to get us baserunners.”
Bethpage (13-4) plays No. 1 Calhoun at 5 p.m. Thursday in the quarterfinals.
“Every girl, top to bottom, we can truly trust to execute,” Bethpage coach Joseph Inghilterra said. “The pitching from both sides was outstanding, but it’s more fun when you’re on the winning end.”
Christopher Matias covers high school sports for Newsday after spending time in Athletic Facilities and Operation at St. John’s and in Sports Information at CUNY York college.