The Renegades’ Run Ends in Quarterfinals

Stuyvesant’s softball team, the Renegades, began their postseason against Staten Island Technical High School. After falling behind 3-0 in the first inning, the team had to climb out of the early deficit. They rallied and put Staten Island Tech away with some late runs, finally cruising to a 14-8 victory behind their powerful offense.

This first playoff game served as a wake-up call, alerting the Renegades that playoffs would not be a breeze. Considering the team hadn’t played since May 8, rust could have been a factor for miscues on defense and at the plate. “Our defensive game was a little off today, but we had a few strong plays that saved us crucial runs,” senior and co-captain Charlotte Ruhl said. “Once we were able to start hitting we did really well, but it took us a whole lineup to start hitting.” The Renegades underperformed offensively at the beginning of the game, not scoring a single run for the first two innings.

“We played really [sloppily] because we weren’t concentrating, and I think we were a little nervous,” senior and co-captain Frankie Michelli said. Regardless, they finished the game strong, batting .354 as a team and securing the win with an eight-run third inning and a five-run fifth inning.

“Once we calmed down, we were able to play as good as we know we are,” Michelli said.

It seemed like everything was clicking for the Renegades in the second round game against Francis Lewis in a 16-3 mercy victory. Once again, the offense put on a show. Despite giving up two quick runs in the bottom of the first inning, they were able to overwhelm Francis Lewis by scoring three runs or more every inning. Their offense was so strong that they had a team batting average of .600, only .025 off from their biggest win of the season (33-5 against High School for Environmental Studies). Junior Talia Kirshenbaum had a monster game, finishing 3-3 with one double and two triples to accompany four runs and five runs batted in.

Unfortunately, this offensive success came crashing down in the quarterfinal game against Fort Hamilton. The Renegades were shut out 5-0 and hit a measly .120 as a team. This was the first time this whole season the Renegades played a game without scoring a single run and their worst offensive performance of the entire season. It could not have come at a worse time, as it officially eliminated them from the 2018 AA Division playoffs.

Unfortunately, the Renegades were unable to meet Coach Miller’s original goal to “win the division this year and be ranked top five in the city,” he said, as they were seeded seventh and came second in their division behind Manhattan Center for Science & Math. However, despite not meeting these lofty goals set by Miller, the Renegades had a phenomenal season. The team made it to the fourth round of the playoffs, the deepest run with the current core.

While on paper the team looks in decent shape next year, losing only three of its 16 members, a deeper dive yields concerns. Senior and co-captain Delaney Demark’s leadership will be hard to replace. Michelli has been the undisputed ace pitcher for the team her whole career, never dipping below 46 innings pitched in a season and peaking at 100 2/3 innings during her sophomore campaign. The Renegades will need someone to take her place on the mound, with two potential options being juniors Ally Archer or Allie Lennard. Similarly, Ruhl, Michelli’s battery mate behind the plate, will also be greatly missed. Her four home runs paced the team, and her 24 runs batted in were one behind the team leader Archer’s. Besides her powerful presence in the lineup, her unquestioned leadership behind the plate will leave a void both as a leader and as a catcher. The returning Renegades will need to step up to replace these three key members of the team both on and off the field.

Though the Renegades did not end the season on the best note, it would be impossible not to call the year a success. Not only did they win several games by more than twenty runs, but they also defeated some incredibly tough competition with their offense. Ruhl voiced concerns about the Renegades’ ability to compete against faster pitching at the beginning of the season, but their close victory against Benjamin N. Cardozo High and their mercy of Francis Lewis showed they were up for the task, putting in hours both at the batting cages and at practice to improve. While the team has question marks in the field heading into the offseason, the Renegades fought hard until the final out of their impressive season.