Scarborough junior pitcher Shannon Stone has been in the shadow of sophomore teammate Melissa Dellatorre most of the season. On Monday, she got the chance to show what she could do.

After a rude reception by the top of the South Portland (13-3) order in the first inning, Stone was mighty impressive. She surrendered a ground-rule double on the first pitch of the game and allowed a home run to the third batter, then gave up only two singles the rest of the way as Scarborough (16-0) topped South Portland 3-1 in the SMAA semifinal contest played in Scarborough.

“It was just about getting the nerves out because I haven’t had a big game like this,” Stone said. “I was really nervous going into it. Once I got the first inning out of the way, I settled down and relied on my defense.”

South Portland’s Kelsey Flaherty led off the game with a ground-rule double that one-hopped over the fence in center field. On the next pitch, Alexis Bogdanovich ripped a liner that Scarborough second baseman Reegan Brackett snagged on a diving play, then doubled off Flaherty who had taken off from second. Stephanie Thibeault followed with a solo homer to center field to put the Red Riots up 1-0.

Scarborough tied the score in the bottom of the first as Catie Funk’s double scored Heather Carrier, who reached on a single.

The Red Storm took the lead in the sixth when Brackett’s double scored Lauren Aceto and Melissa Bell.

Stone, in her sixth appearance of the season, struck out four and walked three in the complete-game, four-hit effort.

“Shannon Stone has been in the background, but this game shows how good she is,” said Scarborough coach Tom Griffin. “She throws everyday by herself and really works hard. I think she sent a message to the league that ‘I’m here, too.’ I’m really proud of her.”

Since the SMAA tournament games do not count toward the regular season records, and with a possible rematch between Scarborough and South Portland on Saturday in the Western Maine Class A semifinals, both teams gave their No. 1 starters a rest. South Portland pitched Bogdanovich, a freshman, who was also very good. She struck out seven and allowed six hits while walking two.

“You’re still trying to win even though you’re not throwing your ace,” said South Portland coach Jim Hartman. “Those are two very good pitchers right there. Alexis can still bring it.”

Scarborough cleanup hitter Grace Ledoux said Bogdanovich is going to be a pitcher to watch once South Portland senior ace Julie DiMatteo graduates.

“She was good,” Ledoux said. “She has some speed and movement on the ball. She is a pitcher to look out for in the years to come.’

Bogdanovich’s tough luck at the plate continued in the third when she again hit a hard liner that was turned into a double play by the Red Storm.

“We had a lot of shots right at people,” Hartman said. “We got doubled up twice on line drives. It’s just one of those days. That’s why they play seven in the World Series.”

“The defense came up with some big plays to help (Stone) out a little bit,” Griffin said. “Once she settled in, she pitched a really good game. She just had to get through those jitters. It’s a big game for her, probably the biggest game she’s pitched since Junior League.”

Stone said the first inning showed her that she was not going to be able to throw her fastball by the South Portland hitters, so, with the help of catcher Carrier, she made some adjustments.

“I started keeping my pitches lower because great teams can hit the high pitch,” Stone said.

Stone knows Dellatorre will see most – if not all – of the action on the mound once the Western A tournament begins, but she was happy to have the chance to start a game against a top team.

“This was a great opportunity to go out here and show people what I can do,” she said.

Scarborough won 1-0 when the teams met during the regular season. The Red Storm were scheduled to host Gorham on Tuesday night in the SMAA title game, played after the Current’s deadline, for more on that game, see www.keepMEcurrent.com.

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