Defending state champ Monroe-Woodbury rolls past Corning in Class AA softball regional

Monroe-Woodbury's Arianna Exarchakis provided an emotional and tangible lift with a first-inning home run and junior right-hander Valerie Pedersen carried a no-hitter into the seventh inning as the Crusaders rolled to a 13-2 victory over Corning in a Class AA softball regional semifinal Tuesday afternoon.

Exarchakis' shot over the center-field fence at Union-Endicott High School drove in a courtesy runner for Pedersen, who walked after Hawks left-hander Peyton Sullivan retired the first two batters.

"I think we performed great," Pedersen said. "We were all hype, so ready for this game, all the way on the bus. And when Arianna hit that home run, we were just so excited. That just got us going and it went from there."

Section 9 champion Monroe-Woodbury scored in all but two innings, including a six-run seventh inning that turned a comfortable margin into a rout.

"They came out ready to go," first-year Monroe-Woodbury coach Taylor Sullivan said of her team. "Everyone was ready. Their head was in the game. They were looking for their pitch and they were disciplined."

Exarchakis ignited offense

Exarchakis finished with a 4-for-4 day, three runs and five RBIs. She drove in one run with a sacrifice fly and two more with a double over third base. Her approach was simple and effective: swing at strikes and hit the ball hard. No pitch was hit harder than her home run.

"It was awesome," she said. "We knew we had to come out strong because we were the away team and that's what we did. And I'm glad I got it started."

Also for the Crusaders, Olivia Shippee went 3-for-5 with a double and two RBIs. Monroe-Woodbury had 13 hits collectively.

Siena commit Pedersen flirted with no-hitter

Pedersen finished with a two-hitter, striking out 15 and walking five. A line drive up the middle by Courtney Searfoss broke up her no-hit bid with one out in the seventh.

"I'm not going to lie, a little bit," Pedersen said when asked if she was thinking about the no-no. "But I shook it off. I knew my team was here to win and it was a team day."

Pedersen, who has committed to Division I Siena College, said she had all of her pitches working and got a lot of called strikes against Hawks batters. Both Sullivan and Exarchakis immediately used the word "heart" when asked about their pitcher.

"She goes out there and plays hard for us every single game, every single inning, every single pitch and it's awesome," Exarchakis said.

Learning experience for Hawks

Despite a rough day for a team with only two seniors, Corning put together some offense in the final inning. Freshman Hayden Robertson followed Searfoss' single with an almost identical pinch-hit RBI single into center field. A second run came home on an error on the play.

"We've got two seniors," Corning coach Mike Johnston Jr. said. "I said, the rest of you are potential seniors. Now you get a taste of what it's like to play some of the best teams in New York state. You saw a Division I pitcher. Now you know what to expect coming into it next year."

Corning coach's perspective

Corning (9-6-1) committed three errors that led to eight unearned runs. Sullivan's control was not as sharp as it was Saturday in the Hawks' 6-4 win over Elmira in the Section 4 final. She hit four batters, walked three and tossed two wild pitches.

"That’s on us," Johnston said of his team's mistakes. "You can’t do that with a good team because they’re going to make you pay. Kudos to them."

Johnston was impressed with Pedersen, pointing out the Hawks' struggles to put the ball in play.

"She blew it by us," he said. "Her ball was breaking east and west. She had good movement and she threw hard."

Notable

The matchup featured the last two Class AA state champions in New York. Corning won the title in 2019 and Monroe-Woodbury topped the state last year.

Because of COVID, there were no state championships in softball in 2020 or 2021.

Up Next

Monroe-Woodbury (20-3) will face Section 1 champion North Rockland (20-2) in a regional final/state quarterfinal Saturday at Monroe-Woodbury. Last year the Crusaders rolled to a 12-0 win over North Rockland in a regional semifinal before beating Horseheads, 6-2, in the regional final.

"It's an awesome opportunity," Exarchakis said. "We're going to go out, we're going to play hard."

Said Sullivan: "I've known (North Rockland coach) Jackie DiNuzzo for a very, very long time, so I'm excited to play against her. I'm excited for my team to come and be ready to go."

Follow Andrew Legare on Twitter: @SGAndrewLegare. You can also reach him at alegare@gannett.com. To get unlimited access to the latest news, please subscribe or activate your digital account today

This article originally appeared on Elmira Star-Gazette: Monroe-Woodury beat Corning in NYSPHSAA Class AA softball regional