Cedar Grove No. 9 Advances to G1 Finals, Aims for Historic Softball 3-Peat

As soon as Cayce Kavakich had completed her latest, and last, Panther Park masterpiece in the NJSIAA Group 1 semifinals Tuesday, she turned around, bent down and spent a quiet moment with her old friend, the pitcher’s circle, before joining the celebration of her Cedar Grove teammates.

It had little to do with moving another step closer to possibly becoming the first public school in state history to earn three consecutive group titles.

The conclusion of Cedar Grove’s 9-1 victory over visiting Indian Hills was more about reflecting on the final home game for a group of seven seniors who dominated this game like so many others in a run through four seasons of high school softball after their years together in youth leagues.

The senior right-hander admitted it was an unlikely source that led her to finally feeling the drama of the moment.

“I think that bending down at the end was just showing emotion about graduating,” Kavakich said. “During the game I stayed focus and didn’t let my emotions get to me too much. Once it got to the last inning and (assistant) coach Jackie (Velardi) started playing some of those songs, it really hit me that I was never going to play here again.”

Turns out that Frank Sinatra’s “My Way” can still affect a teenager 57 years after it was recorded.

Years from now, softball players at Cedar Grove will probably still be drawing inspiration from this group of seniors.

Their final high school season will conclude with the Group 1 final Friday at Ivy Hill Park in Newark, where the Panthers will face the winner of Wednesday’s semifinal between South Jersey champion Audubon and Central Jersey winner Bound Brook. That game was rained out Tuesday.

Cedar Grove (24-5) took the final step to the title game by relentlessly attacking Indian Hills (16-10) from the first inning, at the plate (nine hits), on the bases (nine steals) and with the arm and bat of Kavakich, the Florida International commit who pitched a four-hitter, no walks and eight strikeouts, including six in a row in the second and third innings.

Kavakich also did not make an out at the plate, getting two hits, stealing two bases and scoring three runs, and demonstrated her team’s aggressiveness when she came home from second on an infield single by Gia Fernandez in the third inning.

It was a reflection of how the program has put itself in this position.

“Were trying not to make the moment bigger than it is,” Cedar Grove head coach Nikki Velardi said about the quest for the first public school group three-peat.

“You still have to perform. You still have to be disciplined. I always tell them ‘Never be complacent.’ Sometimes they get angry and ask, ‘Why are we doing so much base running? Why are we doing this or that?’

“But those are the things that got us to where we are. We can’t be satisfied. Even when it was 9-1, we kept our foot on the gas.”

They made a little more school history in the victory, because the RBI by the St. John’s-bound Fernandez gave her 46 this season to break the school single-season mark set by Holly Calcagno in 2003.

That came in the fourth, after Kavakich had walked and stole second, then came all the way around when Fernandez drilled a shot that bounced off Indian Hills pitcher Audrey Amorusso. The ball was played late to first, as Kavakich sped home to make it a 5-0 lead.

Kavakich also started a three-run first with a single and steal, then scored along with Ava Oeckel (hit by pitch) on a double by Marina Bryant, who came home on a single by Daniella D’Angelo.

Cedar Grove blew the game open with a four-sixth, highlighted by a single by Kavakich that was misplayed in the outfield. Three runs scored on the play, including Kavakich, who demonstrated her coach’s all-out approach.

It was much more than was needed for Kavakich, who retired 10 straight batters after allowing a game-opening single, then finished with a streak of 11 consecutive outs.

Amoruso, a junior right-hander, settled down a bit after the rough first, but the Cedar Grove lineup allowed no breathing room.

“We knew were up against it,” veteran Indian Hills coach coach Joe Leicht said. “They’re veterans and we’re not. And they’re very fast. So you’ve gotta throw people out. But we hung in there.”

Leicht is certainly heartened by the fact that his team won a sectional title with a lineup that did not contain a single senior.

“We had an all-underclass starting team,” Leicht said. “So, I will tell them next year, we are experienced. We just need to get a little faster.”

As Kavakich and fellow senior starters Fernandez, Oeckel, D’Angelo, Bryant, Gabriella Florre and Leah Weinstein left the field following their last game at Panther Park, it seemed fitting that a group of younger players came right in to start a practice.

The future Panthers were ready to do it their way.

Tim McClain can be reached at tmcclain@njadvancemedia.com .

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, who will continue her career at Florida International.

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