HATFIELD — Both Athol and Smith Academy came into Friday afternoon’s softball matchup looking for their first win of the season.
It was a long roller-coaster of a contest, but ultimately the visiting Bears walked away with a 28-17 win.
Athol relied on strong relief pitching from Jenna Bonenfant, who was relatively new to being in the circle.
“It’s not my first time (pitching), but I haven’t started since this year. I [pitched] for the first time last Monday,” Bonenfant said. “This is like my second time pitching.”
Considering her relative inexperience with the position, the former third baseman was impressive in her relief appearance, tossing 12 strikeouts after relieving starter Jaylynn Chapalonis midway through the first inning.
It didn’t take long for either team to start scoring – the Bears notched five runs in their first opportunity at bat and the Falcons answered with four runs of their own. It was a constant back and forth battle all game long, but Athol had one or two more runs each inning, slowly pulling away and relying on Bonenfant’s strong pitching and the team’s stingy defense to keep the home team from catching up.
Athol scored six runs each in the second, third and sixth innings, and kept the Falcons off the board entirely in the final three frames.
Their communication was an important part of their win – players were loud on Friday afternoon, calling out to each other to make sure everyone knew where to throw the ball in each new scenario.
“One thing I really want to make clear is if you make an error, no big deal, but you need to communicate, need to talk to each other, need to know where you’re going, what you’re doing,” Athol head coach Jerry Duguay said. “I never like a silent field. I don’t have to worry about that.”
Both teams are younger this year, and still learning the ropes as they go through the season. Despite the loss, the Falcons had a lot to like from their game on Friday, particularly their approach at the plate. Prior to Friday’s contest, Smith Academy hadn’t scored more than four runs in any of their previous four games; their highest total was in their first game, when they notched 11 against Pope Francis. They blew that out of the water Friday against Athol.
“I think we played really well. Our hitting has improved drastically over the course of our past few games,” Smith Academy head coach Moira Pitrat said. “We’re excited to start playing some more league games, so it should be a lot closer.”
The Falcons were playing shorthanded as well, missing players with sickness and because of April vacation. As a result, there were quite a few players getting used to new positions on the field.
“It was tricky to navigate at first, but I think everyone really adjusted into the position they were in and it paid off today,” Smith Academy senior Haley Springman said.
Despite dressing just nine players, there were plenty of highlights for the home squad – Springman’s triple in the third inning and stellar play at shortstop, a double from Marissa Belina that drove in three RBIs, and a pair of doubles in the bottom of the fourth from Jillian Lavallee and Belina to bring the Falcons within three.
For the Falcons, it will be about finding consistency and learning from each game they play this season.
Hannah Bevis can be reached at hbevis@gazettenet.com. Follow her on Twitter @Hannah_Bevis1.