By MICHAEL LETENDRE
STAFF WRITER
BRISTOL – The Bristol Central softball team is a veteran bunch and in a crosstown tilt against Bristol Eastern on Thursday, May 5, the Rams were on-point from the first pitch.
Central drilled the Lancers for 22 totals hits – 13 of those coming over a wild third frame of play – as the Rams zipped up a 24-2 victory in a CCC South contest from the campus of Bristol Eastern.
The entire Central line-up got involved in this one as the ball went flying all over the field.
Allie Martel went 1-for-4 but she smacked out a three-run homer, walked, drew a sacrifice fly and nabbed five RBI on the afternoon.
Ali Holden pitched a gem of a game (two runs, three hits) and went 3-of-4 from the plate with three runs scored, two RBI and a base-on-balls.
Sam Laviero had three hits, scored three times and earned a walk while McKenna Driscoll reached base successfully in all five of her plate appearances.
She went 4-for-4, added two RBI and touched home plate four times.
Lindsay Holden was 2-of-3 with a two RBI double when the game was still in doubt to go along with two runs.
Alexa Caron flipped in two hits and generated a double, three runs, and three RBI while Brittany Stancavage netted two hits, three runs and two RBI.
Sarah Strilkauskas was hit by a pitch, or two, singled and had an RBI while Jenna Ptak was impressive in the ninth spot in the order with two singles, three scored runs, and a base-clearing triple in the fifth frame to finish off the Lancers.
Truly, the veteran team’s bats were swinging from the start and the hitting was contagious.
“We like to score in bunches, I guess,” said Central coach Monica Hayes. “All year long we’ve scored in bunches. We had one big inning here and one big inning there and they seem to come in bunches.”
Eastern’s Makenzie Jankowski led the Lancers offense with a triple and a run, Mikayla Martin added an RBI single to the effort while losing pitcher Ashley Redman had an infield hit to pace the squad.
In fact, it was an early flurry of offense that kept the home team in the game to start things off as it was a 2-2 contest after one frame of action.
But Central got on the board first as the Rams staged a two out rally.
With Ali Holden and Driscoll on base, Lindsay Holden unleashed a base-clearing double. Just a half-inning into things, the Rams were already in front 2-0.
But there was an immediate response by the Lancers.
With one out, Jankowski slammed a triple to get into scoring position, Jordan Fitzsimons walked aboard and when Martin singled home the lead runner, the RBI blooper made it a 2-1 game.
Then Nicole D’Amato flipped a fly ball to the outfield for another out but Fitzsimons scooted home as the contest was quickly notched at 2-2.
“I told the girls before the game, we know the situation we’re up against,” said Eastern coach Scott Redman. “[The Rams] have a huge advantage in the circle but if we can put them on their heels a little bit early, let’s see how they respond to the pressure. [Central] had all the pressure today and they responded well.”
“I like the way we competed early. We came out and gave them our best.”
And credit the pitching of Redman in the second inning as she generated two big outs to strand a couple runners, leaving it a 2-2 stalemate which lasted into the third frame.
In Eastern’s portion of the second, Paige McLaughlin walked to start it off and Jillian Maghini sacrificed her over to second with one out.
Redman then unleashed a screamer to shortstop which only went for an infield hit because Martel was able to keep the ball from going into the infield.
But two quick putouts ended the inning as the game remained a 2-2 affair.
“In the bottom of the second, we had runners in scoring position as well,” said Redman. “Could have had a lead right there and who knows what happens then.”
But the wheels quickly fell off the cart in the next tilt and Central sent 21 batters to the plate, collected 13 hits, five walks, and an incredible 15 runs – capped by the three-run home run blast from Martel – making it a 17-2 game with Eastern on the wrong side of the score.
“They were struggling with their pitching so I was trying to force them to swing at strikes, [not to] give into them because they were struggling to find the plate,” said Hayes of her hitters. “And they stuck to their guns and swung at the pitches they liked and that’s what you have to do against any pitcher, not just someone whose struggling.”
Defense fueled the visitors throughout the contest and when Central zipped out a double play to open the third inning, the squad’s 15-run lead was firmly intact.
To end the game, the Rams retired the final batters eight they faced and 10 of 11 overall.
“Defensively, we’re pretty solid right now,” said Hayes. “I’ve got a veteran group. A lot of them have played four years. It’s nothing new for them to be out here in big games. If the ball is hit to shortstop, it’s an out. If the ball’s hit to second base, it’s an out. That’s just a testament to them and they work hard every day in practice and we do drills every day.”
Ali Rivoira came into the game midway through the third inning. In the fourth, she gave up just one hit and did not allow a runner to tag the plate.
But with the Eastern offense shut down, Central ended the game with seven additional runs as an RBI single by Stancavage, the three-run triple by Ptak, and the sac fly from from Martel ended the scoring with the Rams winning the event by 22 runs in a 24-2 romp.
“Central is just a really talented team,” said Redman. “They just hit the ball [all over the field]. They put it in gaps…it’s just the nature of the situation we’re in.”
Central was scheduled to play again the following day but the rain once again played havoc with the schedule.
But Hayes and her squad are ready for any game, regardless of when they occur.
“You know what, that’s fun, to play games,” said Hayes. “What are you going to do? You’re just going to go back and play again tomorrow, wash the uniform, and be ready to play.”
And for Eastern, one additional win means instance playoff qualification and it’s is well within reach for the Lancers.
“One win. One more win and we’re in,” said Redman of the state tournament. “We definitely have that tournament in mind, in our sights.”
Comments? Email mletendre@BristolObserver. com.
