Gert Mascino offers
Sentinel strength

By Melissa Yerkov
Times Sports Editor

It has been three weeks since the shocking death of Little Flower senior Lacey Gallagher, but the high school and local community are still dealing with the loss of the popular student and athlete.
"I still don’t think the girls are back to being one-hundred percent yet," said Little Flower softball coach Harvey Maddock. "They’re worn down . . . emotionally, physically, everything. They’re just down."
Gallagher, 18, a senior and key player on Little Flower’s soccer team, died just before 3 a.m. on April 28 as she and six other teens were traveling from the school’s senior prom to a party in the Pocono Mountains. The sport utility vehicle they were in struck a center concrete barrier on the Pennsylvania Turnpike in northern Bucks County and rolled several times, coming to rest on its roof.
Gallagher, a passenger, died at the scene. The others — including her boyfriend and three Little Flower classmates — suffered injuries in the crash.
The Fishtown resident had been looking forward to starting classes at Chestnut Hill College in the fall and playing soccer.
Her death has been particularly felt by Little Flower teammates, who were among hundreds of people who attended a memorial vigil the evening after the accident, as well as the funeral services that followed later that week.
"We had a few soccer girls on our team who knew her," said senior Gert Mascino, a catcher for Little Flower’s softball team. "As seniors, we had to be the strongest ones. We tried to help the other girls a lot.
"The girls who knew her remembered what a great person she was," Mascino said. "And the girls who didn’t know her were the same way. We all came together. We talked about her, and I think that made everyone feel better."
Mascino was a good friend of Gallagher’s. Despite her own mourning, she is standing strong to help her teammates.
"None of us wanted to be here," Mascino said after a recent softball game. "But I think, for the most part, that the girls were brought closer together with everything that happened."
A 1-0 victory against Archbishop Prendergast on May 10 improved the Sentinels’ record to 11-4. It was their first win since the accident that claimed Gallagher’s life.
"We played two great games the week before the accident and it seemed like the girls were clicking together really well," said coach Maddock. "And then that happened, and now we’re all off. I feel sorry for them. They play a great game, for as much as they can put out. The team is good, we just have to get them back up again."
Mascino is up for that challenge. As one of four seniors on the Sentinels’ softball team — currently ranked first in the Catholic League Southern Division — she is reaching out to her younger teammates.
It took a lot of time and experience to build Mascino into the player — and person — she is today. The four-year varsity athlete has come a long way during her time at Little Flower.
"I didn’t see a lot of playing time my first two years," said Mascino. "I was really quiet and just kind of like the warm-up girl."
A lot has changed since then.
These days, Mascino is one of the dominating players on the Little Flower diamond. The catcher forms a solid tandem with Maggie Reifsnyder, one of the top pitchers in the city.
"Gert is one of the best girls out there," said Maddock. "I have her catching right behind Maggie, which isn’t easy. But she does a great job for us."
Reifsnyder has four pitches, including a change-up, drop, curve and her signature fastball. But Mascino catches the all-star pitcher with ease.
"The most challenging part is calming down the pitcher," said Mascino. "When she doesn’t get the strikes, she gets discouraged."
Mascino has felt at home on the softball diamond since she was a kid. She started out playing baseball, and then discovered the Philadelphia Spirit fast-pitch tournament team, which she has been part of since age 9.
"I love travel ball," she said. "I’ve been playing for them for a long time. Originally I didn’t want to be a catcher. I was always a third baseman. But then the team was in need of a catcher, so I stepped up."
She came to be rather fond of the gear.
"I’ve always loved softball," said Mascino. "And catching is great. The team always has fun together — win or lose."
Not many people would regard demanding practices and year-round training as fun. But Gert Mascino isn’t most people.
"I do a lot of squats in the off-season and I lift a lot, so I’m pretty used to it," she said. "We practice as a team every day that we don’t have a game. Then from here I have practice for the Spirit. And if I don’t have practice, I’m usually at the fields running or working out."
Mascino hopes to resume her passion for softball in the fall, when she starts classes at Holy Family University.
"I’m really looking forward to going to Holy Family," said Mascino. "I’ll go on the team as a walk-on and see what happens.
"I’ve always had fun playing softball," she added. "I never took it too seriously. I always just do my best and try to have as much fun with it as I can." ••
Sports editor Melissa Yerkov can be reached at 215-354-3035 or myerkov@phillynews.com