Slow Start Costs Wahconah Against Greenfield
DALTON, Mass. – The Greenfield softball team Tuesday spotted MacKenzie Paulin a three-run lead in the top of the first inning, and the Green Wave ace compiled 15 strikeouts in an 8-1 win over Wahconah.
Wahconah managed just three hits in taking its second loss of the season against Greenfield.
But the seven-run margin was more respectable than the 13-1 final score the first time Wahconah met the top-ranked Division 5 team in the commonwealth.
And it was a lot closer than the game started out, with Greenfield grabbing a 6-1 lead after the second inning.
Although Wahconah settled down after a rocky start, the hole was a little too deep against Merrimack College commit Paulin.
“You’re going up against a really good team, right?” Wahconah coach Dustin Belcher said. “Who knows where they’ll end this season, but right now, in today’s rankings, they’re No. 1 in Division 5. So they’re legitimate.
“You just can’t give a team like that that kind of lead early. It’s hard. I’m proud of the way we kind of hung in there, though. And I think we made enough plays to stay in it. Giving up that big lead really hurt.”
The Green Wave took advantage of a Wahconah error in the first inning.
After a single by Anna Bucala to start the game, a pitch to the backstop got her to second, and Olivia Lemay reached on a two-base error that plated Bucala to make it 1-0. A passed ball got Lemay to third, and she came home on Paulin’s sacrifice fly.
Greenfield’s Gloria McConald then crushed a triple to straightaway center field and came home one batter later on a ground ball to the right side to make it 3-0.
Wahconah scored in the bottom of the first without putting the ball in play. Sammie Kaley worked a leadoff walk and came all the way around to score when a passed ball on a third strike led to a throw to first base that went into right field.
In the top of the second, Greenfield got four straight singles with one out to put three more runs on the board.
Later, Ella Rotkiewicz put the finishing touches on the win with a two-run single in the top of the sixth to provide the final margin.
Wahconah’s offense, meanwhile, put some pressure on Greenfield. But Paulin and her defense were up to the challenge.
In the second, Alliah DiPietro and Madison McCarthy reached on infield singles, but Paulin got the final out of the inning on a swinging third strike to leave both runners on.
In the fourth, McDonald made an outstanding play in center field to deny Mariah Barnes an extra base hit. And MacDonald made another play on a looping line drive to keep Barnes off the basepaths in the sixth.
“I think we could have done a little bit better job competing at the plate, but, overall, I think we did a decent job making some adjustments,” Belcher said.
“These games can only help you in the long run, if you can stay positive and try to build off of the things you do well and correct some of the mistakes that they expose.”
One positive on Tuesday night was the play of ninth-grade pitcher Harper Keay, who rebounded after Greenfield’s three-run rallies in the first two innings to pitch well the rest of the way.
“For a freshman, she’s got great composure in the circle,” Belcher said. “She’s a competitor. She goes out there and takes it one pitch at a time, which is tough when you’re a freshman playing some of these teams.
“But I’m really impressed with the way she’s handled it, and Edrie [Collins] has done a nice job as a senior captain behind the plate of keeping her focused.”
Wahconah (5-6) hosts Turners Falls on Thursday.