LONDONDERRY — Pinkerton senior Cara Chooljian dropped to her knees in frustration, and no doubt exhaustion, as Londonderry scored the only run of the game in the bottom of the 16th inning yesterday.
The disappointment in her face was evident as she watched Kelly Hunt cross the plate on a bases-loaded walk. But moments later, Chooljian's face was much brighter as she reflected on her performance.
"Even after the game, I was smiling because I know it was a great accomplishment to pitch that many innings," said Chooljian, who threw around 240 pitches in the marathon, which lasted three hours. "I think 10 innings, maybe once, is the most I've ever gone."
But it wasn't just the length of Chooljian's performance that was so impressive. She retired the first 12 batters of the game, including seven by strikeouts, allowed only three baserunners through 11 innings, with none past first base. She finished with a five-hitter, fanning 15.
"We worked on a program the last two weeks where she could pitch 14 innings, because crazy things happen in the tournament, but I never thought we'd go 16 innings," said Pinkerton coach Terry Bailey. "You can't say enough about how Cara played for us — just an incredible performance."
By the 12th inning, Chooljian was running on adrenaline, and she told Bailey that there was no way she was coming out of the game. But the body wouldn't quite cooperate in the 16th and her pitches started rising, finally resulting in four walks in the inning and the 1-0 setback.
"It all just kind of hit me in the last inning," she said. "That was when I realized how tired I was. I couldn't keep the ball down."
Regardless of the loss, it was a memorable performance in what was likely the last scholastic competition of Chooljian's career. She's headed to Division 1 East Carolina next year.
"This is it for me," she said. "It wasn't the best note, but it ended on a good note."
