Syrett leads Bay Shore to 'AA' title

Courtney Syrett, playing on a sprained left ankle and off crutches only since Monday, smashed a line-drive home run to lead off the seventh inning as No. 1 seed Bay Shore beat No. 6 Deer Park, 19-4, Thursday in Game 2 to sweep the Suffolk Class AA finals.

"It was pretty shocking, but it felt good to hit it over that big fence," said Syrett, who was 3-for-5 with five RBIs, two runs, a double, home run and a walk. "Everything just clicked for us today."

The catcher's shot traveled about 220 feet to centerfield and over a 10-foot metal fence that surrounded the field at Deer Park. Though it wasn't a game-changing moment, the power of the swing was a perfect metaphor for a 25-0 Bay Shore team that advanced to Tuesday's matchup against Farmingdale in the Class AA Long Island Championship at 4:30 p.m. at Bellport Martha Avenue Field.

This is Bay Shore's 13th Suffolk title since coach Jim McGowan, who's retiring after the season, took over the program in 1983. The combined 23 runs in Game 2 were the most ever scored in a Suffolk Large Schools softball championship.

Bay Shore sent at least eight players to the plate in four innings and scored at least four runs three times against Deer Park (17-8). Giana Panariello was 4-for-6 with three runs, three RBIs, a double and a stolen base; Amber Fogarty went 3-for-6 with three runs, a double and triple, and Briana Coan was 4-for-5 with three RBIs, two runs and a double.

"This game was sick; yesterday was sick; we're just all on our game," said winning pitcher Taylor McGowan, who went 4-for-5 with a double, walk and RBI. "It's what we've worked on all year, and it's paying off for everybody."