LeCocq Shoulders the Load

For four seasons, the right arm of Maureen LeCocq silenced opposing batters.

But it was her left arm that hushed a capacity crowd at Mayfair Park on Friday night.

LeCocq dislocated her nonthrowing shoulder as she raised her arms in exaltation moments after striking out the side to clinch Chaminade High’s 10-0 victory over Bloomington for the Southern Section Division IV championship.

Teammates and coaches, rushing to the circle to celebrate the school’s first softball title, stopped in their tracks as the Stanford-bound pitcher crumpled to the ground.

“It was not exactly what we were planning,” LeCocq said of the celebration.

Dr. Donald Barceloux, father of Chaminade player Shannon Barceloux, reinserted the shoulder after about five minutes. LeCocq first dislocated the shoulder in Chaminade’s season opener March 9.

Little else went wrong for the top-seeded Eagles (25-6-1), who had 16 hits from 10 players and scored seven runs in the fourth inning to break open a 2-0 game.

It was Chaminade’s best offensive showing in 15 games.

“This is like a dream come true,” said Coach Steve Harrington, who is 106-44-2 in five seasons. “This is a very happy day.”

Harrington had reason to be apprehensive.

The night before the team’s first appearance in a division final, five seniors, including four starters, were out until dawn, attending the school’s graduation night at Disneyland.

“The busses were pulling in as I was showing up for work,” Harrington said.

Barceloux, a freshman outfielder, steadied his nerves before the game.

“Don’t worry, Coach,” she said. “Everything will be OK.”

Then she went out and stroked a two-run single in the third inning for a 2-0 lead. Barceloux was three for four with three runs batted in.

That was plenty for LeCocq (23-2), who hurled her 14th consecutive shutout and finished a remarkable senior season with 92 consecutive scoreless innings.

She allowed two hits, struck out nine and faced only three batters over the minimum to finish her career with 749 strikeouts and a 67-20 record. She will be named the top high school player in the nation next week and will have her No. 22 jersey retired by the school.

The Eagles finished their landmark season with a 21-game winning streak and claimed Chaminade’s third section championship of the school year. The boys’ basketball and girls’ soccer teams also won titles.

Seniors LeCocq, Lauren Rousselet, Erin Taylor, Amy Biersch and Amanda Pearlman may have been tired from grad night festivities, but they wore out Bloomington.

Rousselet was three for three, LeCocq and Biersch each had two hits and Taylor had one.

“I can be tired [Saturday],” said Rousselet, one of seven Eagles to drive in a run. “I’m on cloud nine right now.”

Bloomington (17-10) also was appearing in its first final.

Chaminade sent 12 batters to the plate in the fourth inning, scoring seven runs and taking a 9-0 lead.

“That was a great team,” said Bloomington Coach Bobby Flores, whose team upset three league champions in the playoffs. “I’m surprised they’re not a Division I team. They would beat most of them.”

It was also a team with a mission.

Every starter returned from the 20-8-1 team that was upset by Fullerton Rosary in the semifinals.

The Eagles were determined not to fall short this time.

“We went out with a bang,” LeCocq said. “All of us.”

David Versus Boron

* Defending Southern Section Division VI champion Cornerstone Christian is hardly considered the favorite today in section final. In the other dugout will be undefeated Boron with 24 wins. Cornerstone Christian ace Julia Hartnell (18 wins) will face Jennifer Jenkins (0.20. ERA) of Boron. Page 12