There were more than a few twists and turns during the regular season.
Now it’s playoff time, and the Mardjetko Magic is back for Lemont.
Meet Rhea, relief pitcher extraordinaire.
“Haha… it’s kind of fun, kind of exciting,” Mardjetko said. “I just like shutting people down, having the confidence to boost the team.”
The Illinois Wesleyan commit came up aces during Wednesday’s 6-5 victory over Providence in a Class 3A Lemont Sectional semifinal game.
Mardjetko, a senior right-hander, pitched the final four innings to earn the win for Lemont (24-10). Avaree Taylor added two hits, including what would be the game-winning single. Raegan Duncan added a key double.
Mia Sanfratello picked up a pair of hits for Providence (23-9). Sophia Thormeyer and Abby Johnson each contributed doubles.
Lemont will play Oak Forest (27-6) at 4:30 p.m. Friday for the sectional title. The Bengals beat Ottawa 2-1 in the other semifinal.
Mardjetko entered the game to start the fourth inning with Lemont trailing 4-2. She allowed just two hits the rest of the way and one unearned run. She struck out three.
“I was pretty nervous from the get-go, but once I settled in, I was good,” Mardjetko said. “I just thought to myself, ‘Go in and do your thing.’
“We all have confidence in each other, knowing we can do good defense, and we can hit right after that.”
Duncan, meanwhile, started the winning rally for Lemont in the top of the seventh with a one-out double. Taylor followed with a sharp grounder that skittered into right-center for an RBI single.
“I just go up to the plate and do anything I can for the team,” Taylor said. “I tried to stay simple there, didn’t try to do too much. I just wanted to get it into a hole or a gap.”
Mission accomplished. Mardjetko took care of the rest.
Rhea Mardjetko has had one of the toughest sister acts to follow in the history of Illinois softball.
Her sister Sage, now a freshman standout at South Carolina, spent three seasons bringing Lemont one magical moment after another.
Her senior season alone, Sage was 23-0 with 340 strikeouts and a 0.00 ERA. She also threw a no-hitter in the Class 3A state championship game.
How does one follow that? Rhea didn’t get any pressure from her teammates.
“I don’t think anybody expected her to do what Sage did,” Duncan said. “She just went in there and did what she had to do. Oh, my gosh, I mean it’s insane. It shows a great thing for her as a person and a softball player.”
Mardjetko put no pressure on herself. She just created her own pitching persona.
“I just feel like I’m a different pitcher than Sage,” Mardjetko said. “I have different stuff than her, and that helped me get through that mindset of, ‘Oh, I have to be just as good.’
“I just did my own thing, and in the end, it’s working.”
Mardjetko has been part of a three-pitcher staff with junior Sydney Kibbon and senior Emma Kaczmarski. Her 10 wins leads the team, and she’s averaging a tick over one strikeout an inning.
“At the beginning, it was like one person would pitch a game,” Mardjetko said. “But then, they realized we needed to split more to limit the runs. Sydney is a great pitcher. When we work together, we win like this.”
It worked in the regional championship game when Mardjetko came in for the save against Tinley Park. The Providence game made it two in a row.
Lemont coach Christine Traina has a closer — who can also do much more.
“Give her credit,” Traina said. “She has come in and done her job. We knew Rhea could be a pitcher for us. We just told her, ‘Remember, you are Rhea. You aren’t Sage. You aren’t anybody else.’
“She just had to believe in herself. And I think she’s done that.”
Tony Baranek is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.
