When Karina Shuster is at her best, there is little opponents can do to get past her.
In a non-conference matchup against Keystone, Amherst’s second-team All-Ohio pitcher threw an 18-strikeout gem, as the Comets went on to win, 11-0, on May 11.
“We just told (Shuster after the game) that her location was phenomenal today,” Amherst coach Lacey Reichert said. “We tried to throw a few more fastballs today than movement pitches just so she can start spotting that like the fastball in and a fastball up and away. Anything we called, she was locked in today. When she is like that, she is tough.”
PHOTOS: Amherst vs. Keystone softball, May 11, 2026
Although Shuster (two walks, one hit, 103 pitches) conceded a walk in the first inning, Amherst did not give up a Keystone (17-4) hit until the fourth.
“I was feeling good and loose. I was ready to play today,” Shuster said.
Reichert, who has coached the Comets for 12 seasons, could not recall another time a Comets pitcher threw 18 strikeouts.
“I think that (my success) makes me way more confident, because I know I am capable of doing stuff like that, and it makes my team more confident in me too,” Shuster said.
Amherst led, 5-0, after the first inning. The Comets took advantage of four early walks and a pair of errors. They also put the bat on the ball in timely spots.
“In that first inning, we put the ball in play, we did things to make them get us out and we capitalized on some errors in the first inning,” Reichert said. “We told the girls, especially for the tournament, that you have to make teams beat you. You cannot beat yourselves by striking out 12 to 13 times per game.”
Keystone’s next game will be against Youngstown Liberty in a Division V Northeast 3 district tournament opener on May 13. Wildcats coach Anna Saxton was not thrilled about her team’s performance.
“You are not going to win many games with 18 strikeouts, I can tell you that,” she said.
Despite it not being the performance she had hoped for, Shuster’s pitching is what the Lorain County League champion needed to face to get ready for the postseason.
“It is about making adjustments,” Saxton said. “This is what the game is built off of. We know that the game is built off making adjustments and if we aren’t making those adjustments, then we can’t expect to play the game the same way every inning.”
Shuster was also one of Amherst’s top hitters with two hits and a pair of RBI.
Second baseman Makenna Dorobek was a triple away from hitting for the cycle. With three hits, Dorobek drove in five runs, including a three-run home run in the seventh inning to lead 11-0. Dorobek also struck a two-run double in the fifth.
The score (May 11)
Amherst 11, Keystone 0