Raiders’ dynamic duo: Stachowicz and Susany look to lead South Range on another playoff run
Coming off of a district title run a year ago, the South Range Raiders softball team is continuing its dominant run, thanks in part to a stellar one-two punch in pitchers Juli Stachowicz and Sam Susany.
The duo have obliterated teams this season, leading the Raiders to a 14-2 overall record and a 9-0 conference record this season. Stachowicz has dazzled in the circle for the Raiders this season and head coach Jeff DeRose said she is still finding ways to improve.
“She signed to play in college and she’s literally taking lessons still and has added a couple miles-per-hour on her fastball,” DeRose said. “She sits in the low 60s which is really good for high school. She’s hungry and eager to pitch.”
The lessons seem to be paying off.
Stachowicz has posted a 5-0 record, and through 54 1/3 innings pitched has struck out 78 batters, allowed only 19 walks and has an earned run average of 0.90. Despite the staggering numbers, DeRose credits Stachowicz with having a strong leadership presence in the dugout as well.
“She’s our biggest cheerleader. She cheers everyone on and is like a player/coach,” DeRose said. “She’s constantly trying to help them out and it shows. She’s one of our top leaders for sure.”
DeRose also added that when Stachowicz is pitching, much of that day’s gameplan revolves around her.
“We have our first tournament game Thursday (May 11) and this is the time to make adjustments,” he said. “Thinking out loud with the other coaches, (Stachowicz) will get the ball a lot in the playoffs because of her success. She’s a strong, two-way player. She’s pretty awesome to have.”
Not only is Stachowicz pitching lights out, she’s also a force when she steps into the batter’s box. She currently ranks second on the team with a .502 batting average and leads the team in hits and runs batted in with 29 and 23, respectively.
With Susany as the second behind Stachowicz, South Range has a significant upper hand against other teams, according to DeRose. Akin to Stachowicz, Susany has also posted a sub-one ERA (0.96) and boasts a 5-1 record.
“(Susany) also throws the ball hard, but she has really good off-speed pitches and can hit locations better than (Stachowicz). We’re figuring out tendencies with batters and are trying to pitch around that and (Susany) is very good at that,” DeRose said.
In 36.1 innings pitched, Susany has fanned 47 batters, allowed only five walks and 22 hits. The tandem of Stachowicz and Susany, in DeRose’s opinion, gives South Range an advantage.
“The nice thing is that I do have a one-two punch and other schools don’t. When you’re in the playoffs, some teams will only have their No. 1 pitcher. If one of mine is off, I can throw the other one in there and not bat an eye. It’s a nice luxury to have,” DeRose said.
Another luxury to have as the season winds down is an offense that has outscored opponents 166-18 this season. Freshman Kiera Brogan has stood out this season with a team-high .528 batting average, as well as adding 28 hits and a staggering .924 slugging percentage.
“She’s a freshman and she transferred from Pennsylvania. You talk about a gem, we were lucky to get her,” DeRose said. “She came from a good travel program. It’s refreshing for Brogan to have players around her that take it seriously and it makes her feel a lot more comfortable.”
With some pressure being taken off thanks to the pitching performance this season, Brogan has been able to show her prowess at the plate.
“Pitching for sure is huge, but we have a lot of good hitters,” DeRose said. “We’ve put up a lot of runs and, if our pitching wasn’t as good as it is, our offense would keep us in games. We may not be the fastest team, but we have a lot of power.”
As the Raiders head to the postseason, DeRose said his team will be taking it “one game at a time.”
“We’re going to focus on (Stachowicz) and rely on her as much as we can while having (Susany) in our back pocket. We aren’t going to change much… We’re going to ride what we’ve got,” he said. “Our goal right now is to get to the regionals and then we’ll see what happens.”