Eagles advance

By BOB VARMETTE

Journal Sports Writer

NEW ULM -- The old cliche says hitting is contagious. Shelly Gramentz was the infecting agent.

Largely contained for three innings, Gramentz and the New Ulm Eagles erupted for a nine-run outbreak in the fourth and eliminated the Monticello Magic 11-1 in five innings in the first round of the Section 2-3A softball playoffs Monday at Harman Park. New Ulm will face Willmar in the second round of the double-elimination tournament at 5 p.m. today at Caswell Park in North Mankato.

"It was a little bit of the first-game jitters," Gramentz said. "Everything depended on this game. We all wanted to get that first big hit and we were hitting her from the start, but we just got a little more relaxed and came out in that one inning."

That one inning was the fourth. New Ulm (15-4) used nine hits and a critical error by Monticello (5-16) to score nine runs -- eight of them unearned.

Gramentz got the first hit of the onslaught, and also picked up the first hit of the game in the second inning off Monticello's Megan Moore (5-16), who allowed only three earned runs. Gramentz finished 3-for-3 with a pair of runs scored and one RBI.

The senior catcher was one of four Eagle hitters to pick up at least two hits off Moore, who came into the game with 127 strike outs -- 11th best in the Metro during the regular season. Allison Boddy went 2-for-4 with three RBI and a run scored, and Meghan Reedy and Sheena Stueber each collected a pair of hits for New Ulm.

Brittany Gorres went 1-for-3 with a two-RBI single in the fourth.

"We were all nervous because it was the playoffs," Boddy said. "We all wanted to start off right, but once we got used to her, and we realized it was the same as we've always faced, we were fine."

Moore yielded 13 hits in the game, but looked strong through the first three innings. Gramentz touched her for a one-out infield single in the second and later scored on a Shannon Gorres bloop single to left for a 1-0 New Ulm advantage.

But it came apart for Moore in the bottom of the fourth.

Jenny Brandel led off the inning reaching on an error. Gramentz then got her second single of the game and Reedy followed with a bunt single before Stueber singled in Brandel.

Christine Wendinger then bounced a comebacker to Moore who went home to force Gramentz for what should have been the third out of the inning. That lead-off error proved very costly.

Boddy followed with a single up the middle, scoring two runs. Brittany Gorres singled two batters later driving in another two runs, and Brandel and Gramentz followed with back-to-back RBI triples before Reedy singled in the final New Ulm run.

Thirteen Eagle batters went to the plate in the inning.

"It seems that one hit kind of followed the other and kids got pumped up when they saw the other hits taking place," New Ulm coach Jim Pearson said. "(Moore) might have got a little frustrated on the mound, too, not being able to do as well she did in the first couple of innings."

Stueber singled to lead off the fifth and Boddy got the game-ending RBI with a single up the middle.

"She had good speed, nothing that we couldn't handle," Gramentz said. "We've seen the speed before. I think she started to lose confidence later in that one inning that we came out and got on her with them having two outs."

While Moore could do nothing to stop the outbreak of Eagle hits, New Ulm starter Cassie Schultz (10-2) was totally inoculated. Schultz tossed a one-hitter and struck out seven.

The Magic picked up their only run in the top of the fourth when Terri Dircks reached on a lead-off walk, stole second and scored on Lauri Dircks' single to center. Schultz then retired the final three batters in order, including striking out Monticello's last two batters.

"It's big win," Gramentz said. "If we had lost, we'd be done now. As a senior, I didn't really want to see that happening."

MONTICELLO 000 10 -- 1 1 2

NEW ULM 010 91 -- 11 13 0

One out when game called on 10-run rule

Moore and L.Dircks. Schultz and Gramentz. W--Schultz, 10-2. L--Moore, 5-16. HRs--None.