Softball walks off against Ursuline, heads to Section 1 finals

All eyes will be on Eastchester’s softball team on Sunday, as the Eagles head up to North Rockland High School to square off against Yorktown with a Section 1 title hanging in the balance. 

The top-seeded Eagles punched their ticket to the Class AA championship game with a gritty walk-off win over Ursuline on Thursday, topping the Koalas 5-4 on an RBI by Kylie Reardon. The walk-off was their second of the week, as Eastchester had previously come up clutch against Saunders in the quarterfinals on May 26. 

Head coach Pat Gallo credited his team for its ability to execute in big moments, citing chemistry and a shared vision as two key reasons for the Eagles’ deep postseason run. 

“If you look at the season we’ve had, we’ve probably had about nine or 10 games where we’ve come back or won late; this group just never believes the game is over,” said Gallo. “I think they relish having that last chance.”

Eastchester jumped out to a 3-0 lead early on Thursday before the Koalas struck back to take a 4-3 lead in the 4th inning. Reardon would tie things up with a single in the fifth before her decisive at-bat in the bottom of the seventh iced the game for the No. 2-seeded Eagles squad. 

In addition to Reardon’s heroics, the Eagles also got a big day from Sophia Gutierrez, who had two hits, including a solo home run.

“This is a very close group, and when a team has confidence in each other, when they have a good time together, they can be successful,” said Gallo. “You’ve got the juniors and sophomores who have been playing together since little league, you’ve got the eighth and ninth graders who really grew up watching the older girls play and looking up to them, it’s really created a magical little dynamic.”

With the win, the Eagles earned the right to take on No. 3-seeded Yorktown on Sunday at 12:30 p.m. The Huskers advanced with a 9-0 upset win over No. 2 Harrison in the semifinals. This is the Eagles' first championship game appearance since 2017.

Gallo noted that the team will be taking batting practice at Eastchester High School on Sunday morning from 9 to 9:45 AM, and will be welcoming community members who want to come out and see them off as they head up to North Rockland. 

“All year, we’ve been reminding the girls to enjoy the wins; enjoy the losses, the successes and the failures, and I think that was big on Thursday,” said Gallo. “I kept on telling them to look at how many people came out to see them play. I want them to enjoy this moment and have fun with this.”