Softball: Dimitrijevic, Doerre lead Lincoln-Way Central past Lincoln-Way West

NEW LENOX – Lincoln-Way Central was looking for someone other than sophomore standout Lisabella Dimitrijevic to put their stamp on Thursday’s SouthWest Suburban Conference crossover game against Lincoln-Way West.

The Knights found that someone in sophomore Kayla Doerre.

Doerre slapped a two-strike single through the left side of the infield in the bottom of the sixth inning, scoring Mia Guide with the winning run in a 2-1 victory.

“I was just trying to put the ball in play,” Doerre said. “I had nothing to lose. I saw it get through the infield when I was running to first, and I was pretty happy.

“This is the type of game we expect when we play West or East. We just wanted to do our jobs, and we found a way to come back. Bella was awesome, and a lot of people stepped up today.”

Dimitrijevic was dominant throughout, save for a couple of batters in the top of the sixth. With one out in the sixth, Ava Murphy caught hold of a pitch and drove it through the gap in right-center and sped around the bases for a triple. The next batter, Molly Marquardt, who had the other hit for the Warriors with a single in the first, lifted a sacrifice fly to right-center that brought Murphy home with the game’s first run.

Perhaps miffed by allowing a run, Dimitrijevic led off the bottom of the sixth and took out any frustrations she had on the first pitch she saw. She got all of it, and sent a home run into a tree beyond the center-field fence to tie the game.

“I was fired up that inning,” Dimitrijevic said. “Something in me didn’t want to lose. I don’t know what kind of pitch it was, but I know it was right down the middle.”

Guide followed Dimitrijevic’s home run with a single to right, then was sacrificed to second by Lucy Cameron. An out later, Doerre delivered the winning hit that brought Guide home.

Dimitrijevic and West freshman Reese Rourke were both outstanding in the circle. Dimitrijevic struck out nine of the first 10 hitters she faced, and the defense didn’t record an out until the fifth inning, when Sarah Kmak made a terrific running, back-handed catch in left off a drive by Cam Ball. That was an inning after Dimitrijevic pitched around a pair of infield errors that put two runners on base to open the inning by striking out the next three.

“My riseball worked really well for me today,” Dimitrijevic said. “I would go low early in the count and get the hitters looking low, then the rise ball would come and they couldn’t get to it.

“We’ve been putting the ball in play and putting some runs together lately, so I knew we would find a way to get some runs. And after Sarah made that play in left, I knew I didn’t have to strike everybody out. My teammates were going to make the plays.”

After Doerre’s hit gave the Knights (14-4, 8-0 SWSC) the lead, Dimitrijevic sandwiched a pair of strikeouts around a pop-up to the mound in the seventh to secure the victory.

“Bella is pretty special,” Lincoln-Way Central coach Jeff Tarala said. “She threw the ball really well, and she is a free swinger at the plate. She just lets it go, and she got hold of one there.

“We take pride in our defense. It’s something we work on nonstop, probably to the point where the girls are annoyed by it. We booted a couple in the infield in the fourth inning, but Sarah Kmak made a great play in the fifth, and she’s been doing that all year. Kayla Doerre is only a sophomore, but she’s been playing up with us for a little while. She does a good job. She handles the bat well, she can get bunts down – which she did in her first at-bat – and she has the confidence to hit with two strikes.”

Rourke allowed just six hits for West (12-7, 4-4) while striking out seven.

“We did everything but win,” West coach Heather Novak said. “Reese threw the ball very well. Both teams played very hard, and it’s always a great game when we play Central. Their pitcher did a great job on the mound and at the plate. She’s as good as we have seen all year.”