SPOTLIGHT: [SUFFOLK Edition]
Krupinski, Joe. Newsday, Combined editions; Long Island, N.Y. [Long Island, N.Y]. 24 Mar 1994
Nobody can accuse Beth Crimi of not thinking big. The 17-year-old Longwood senior has made a oral commitment to play softball next year for the University of Virginia, a Top 20 team in NCAA Division I. “I wanted a strong academic school, too,” said Crimi, who is ranked fifth in her class of 665.
She also has sent in her written application, along with the requisite $25 fee, to be considered for the 1996 U.S. Olympic women’s softball team. “The first round of tryouts is on paper,” Crimi explained. “They want to know how fast you can throw from home to second {1.85 seconds}, your bat speed {65 mph}. They pick out 500 candidates this way. If I don’t make it in 1996, then I’ll try again for the year 2000.”
And, following college graduation, Crimi would like to play for the Raybestos Brakettes, a nationally known women’s fast-pitch team from Connecticut. “She’s got a legitimate shot,” said Kim Gwydir, her coach with the LI Chargers, a team of elite junior players.
Longwood softball coach Bill Anderson called Crimi “one of the most highly motivated athletes I have ever coached.” Last spring the 5-10 catcher not only made the All-County team for the second consecutive season, but also set three school records with a .509 batting average, 24 RBI and five triples. Women’s Fast-pitch World Magazine named Crimi to its high school All-America team.
“The best way to describe Beth’s swing is that she crushes the ball,” Anderson said. “Defensively, she takes charge of the game, daring runners to steal, directing the infielders and encouraging everybody.”
Crimi has been a catcher since she started playing baseball at age 9. “I love it back there,” she said. “You’re right in the middle of all the action.”
Girls tennis coach Joe Bigham praised Crimi’s leadership. “She’s been a starter for me since eighth grade,” he said. “She had a 20-11 record as our No. 1 singles player the past two seasons. More importantly, the attitude she brought to the team was sensational.”
East Islip 20, Longwood 5
Eighth-grade pitcher Stephanie Poetzsch had six strikeouts, gave up five hits and allowed no walks in her first varsity appearance for East Islip, which defeated Longwood, 20-5. Kara Naisby and Laura Arbacas each had a home run for East Islip. March 26
Longwood 13, Half Hollow Hills 4. Beth Crimi’s two-run single keyed a seven-run second inning. WP – Katona. LP – Ruggiero. April 6
Longwood 19, Half Hollow Hills 4. Sandy Ludwin’s run-scoring single started an 11-run fourth inning. Ludwin went 3-for-5 with runs and four RBI. WP – Pennino. LP – Magot. April 9
Patchogue-Medford 10, Longwood 2. Jen Calardo’s two-run single in the first gave Patchogue-Medford a 4-0 lead. Jen Krawczyk went 2-for-3 with two RBI and two runs scored. Aimee Maher struck out eight. WP – Maher. LP – Kalorie. HR – Crimi (L). April 15
Sachem 4, Longwood 0. Cortney James threw a three-hitter. Jen Caputo’s run-scoring double gave Sachem a 1-0 lead in the sixth inning. WP – James. LP – Katona. April 19
Sachem 11, Longwood 7. Kerri Loper’s grand slam in the fourth gave Sachem a 9-3 lead. WP – Wolf. LP – Pennino. HR – Cocchiaro (S), Loper (S); Crimi (L). April 20
Brentwood 13, Longwood 9. Stephanie Jurkowski hit a three-run home run in the fifth to put Brentwood ahead to stay, 10-9. Theresa LaFroscia had two doubles and scored twice for the winners. WP – Morrissey. LP – Katona. HR – Reid (B), Jurkowski (B). April 26
Brentwood 10, Longwood 3. Kim Brown’s two-run homer keyed a four-run third inning that gave Brentwood a 5-2 lead. Hazel Zigrest scattered four hits with three strikeouts to pick up the win. WP – Zigrest. LP – Pennino. HR – Brown (B). April 27
Brentwood 15, Longwood 9. Brentwood sent 14 batters to the plate and scored nine runs in the sixth inning to take a 14-3 lead. Heather Henriquez had two singles with an RBI and a run scored in the inning. Theresa LaFroscia went 4-for-5 with three RBI to lead a 16-hit attack for Brentwood. WP – Zigrest. LP – Pennino. April 29
In League I, Maureen Murdock pitched her third no-hitter of the season and struck out nine as Floyd defeated Longwood, 3-0. Ginnine Roughton’s triple in the fourth inning opened the scoring. Aimee Katona took the loss. May 10
LEAGUE I Smithtown 5, Longwood 2. Barbara Coughlan’s grand slam in the top of the third put Smithtown ahead, 5-0. Eryn McLaughlin threw a three-hitter with five strikeouts to improve her record to 12-4. WP – McLaughlin. LP – Katona. HR – B. Coughlan. May 15
Smithtown 13, Longwood 3. Barbara Coughlan and Michelle Kaplon each had run-scoring singles in Smithtown’s five-run fourth inning for an 11-1 lead. WP – McLaughlin. LP – Pennino. HR – Schour (S) May 20
Smithtown 2, Longwood 1. Danielle Glenn scored from third on Samantha Schour’s sacrifice fly, giving Smithtown a 2-1 lead. Smithtown’s Christine Coughlan led off the fourth with a homer, tying the score at 1. Jen Craigen pitched a three-hitter in her varsity debut with six strikeouts and one walk. WP – Craigen. LP – Katona. HR – C. Coughlan (S). May 21