Jill Cimminello's friends on the O'Neill's Pub team begged her to play with them this year in the Norwalk Women's League. Thursday night, Cimminello showed why she's valuable.
Her third hit capped a five-run seventh inning rally to lift O'Neill's Pub over Partner's Café, 8-7, in the championship game at Calf Pasture Beach. Partner's needed to defeat O'Neill's twice and was one out away from forcing a winner-take-all game. O'Neill's, the league's regular-season champion, pieced together a two-out, none-on rally to win the title.
"We actually were the team we've been all year in the seventh,'' Cimminello said. "All year we had an awesome offense."
Trailing 7-3, Michelle Suda singled and scooted to third on an error. Kelly Healey singled her home, but Partner's turned a nifty double play on Kristen Rubush's grounder. Kelly Daly doubled, and Steph Hill's triple made it 7-5. Winning pitcher Julie Brezinski reached on an error and scored the tying run when Bree Morschauser's double to deep right ticked off the outfielder's glove. Cimminello followed with a smash in the hole between short and third. Morschauser raced home with the winning run when the ball wasn't fielded cleanly.
Cimminello, a former standout at Norwalk High and Quinnipiac University, said she felt pressure in her final at-bat. "Definitely,'' Jill said. "We didn't want to play them again. You never know what could happen."
O'Neill's (13-2 regular season) needed the late dramatics after Partner's built a 5-0 lead after two innings. Amanda Rogers had two hits and scored two runs. Kelly Pegler had four singles, and Jill Picaso had two hits and scored two runs. Partner's reached the final by defeating Tutor Time.
O'Neill's roster includes Kelly Healy, Kristen Rubush, Kelly Daly, Steph Hill, Julie Brzezinski, Bree Morschauser, Jill Cimminello, Renee Escaravage, Kim Nowak and Michelle Suda.
To view some photos from the game, click here.
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