Ahem...

Through Tuesday, Fico has pitched in 126 innings this year. She's struck out 330 batters. She's allowed just eight hits and one run all season (unearned). The last hit was with two outs in the seventh inning of a 3-0 victory over Bethel on April 23.

Her ERA is 0.00

She's thrown five straight perfect games and six out of her last seven games heading into Wednesday's clash with Lauralton Hall. Her only blemish in the last seven games was a walk with one out in the first against New Fairfield.

Since April 25, Fico has only allowed two base runners. One was a hit batter against Immaculate. The other was the walk to New Fairfield.

She's retired (drumroll please....) 128 consecutive batters over 80 innings. That's 20 straight to end the New Fairfield game, 21 vs Brookfield, 30 vs. Bunnell, 15 vs. Stratford, 21 vs. Pomperaug, 21 vs. New Milford.

The five straight perfect games ties a national record set by Lana Davis of Illinois' Casey Westfield High School in 1989. She can set the record...

[ring]

Hold on, phone call at the office.

"Hello, Connecticut Post Sports."
...
"Hey, what's up?"
...
"What?
...
"No kidding. ...what inning?"
...
(laugh) "Oh boy. I was just writing about this stuff for the blog."
...
Yeah. Yeah. I'll never hear the end of it."
...
"OK. Thanks. Bye."

[click]

Well, folks. At approximately 4:20 Wednesday, the perfect game streak is over. Fico allowed a hit to Lauralton Hall in the first inning. [sigh].

Her streak is over. But at least the Connecticut Post jinx lives on. :)

[edit: Lauralton now has two hits off her in the top of the sixth... and Masuk doesn't have a hit off Bridget Gates... Edit, edit: Masuk has won with a ninth-inning RBI single. Here's Big Mike Cardillo's Story: Fico not perfect, but Masuk still is

I guess anything can happen. Maybe playing the Masuk-half of the draw isn't such a bad idea after all.

SPB