Sam Petry’s grand slam saves the day for Island Trees

Sam Petry stood at the plate, her season down to its final strike.

“I figured it might be my last senior at-bat, so I was definitely thinking I’ve got to just get a hit,” she said. “Just trying to put the ball on the ground and in play.”

Instead, she put it in the air and over the fence.

Petry crushed a two-out, two-strike, walk-off grand slam to lift No. 3 Island Trees to a 4-1 win over No. 6 Division on Saturday in the Nassau Class A softball quarterfinals.

“I’ve never seen her hit a ball that hard and that far in the four years she’s been on varsity,” said Island Trees coach Mike Bonsignore.

With the Bulldogs trailing 1-0, Hannah Vogt led off the bottom of the seventh with a single and advanced to third on a wild pitch. Vogt then beat the throw to third after a bunt by pinch-hitter Deanna Obremski to put runners on the corners. A walk to Kristin Grieshaber loaded the bases with no outs.

Division pitcher Justine Jean, who allowed four hits and struck out 11, induced a grounder for the first out. She struck out the next batter, leaving Island Trees down to its final out.

Petry then drilled a 2-and-2 pitch to left, sending the Bulldogs into the semifinals, where they’ll play Clarke in a best-of-three series beginning Monday. When she reached home, she sought out Marissa Trezza, who had pitched brilliantly, allowing five hits, walking two, and striking out eight. She surrendered only a home run to Danielle Roselli in the fifth inning that put Division ahead, 1-0.

“I started crying in the seventh because I thought we were done,” Trezza said. “Two outs, two strikes. I put my head down and that was the second she hit it. She came home, came up to me, gave me a hug, and was like, ‘I got you, kid.’”

As Petry rounded the bases, she too was in tears.

“I was crying of joy,” she said. “I was so excited, so happy. I honestly didn’t think I could ever do that. But I just proved myself wrong.”