GRANBY — Tied 2-2 in the bottom of the seventh inning on Monday night, the No. 6 Granby softball team looked for an offensive spark against No. 27 Whitinsville Christian. The team’s bats had struggled to drive in runners in scoring position throughout the MIAA Division 5 state tournament Round of 32 matchup, hoping to plate their first run since the fourth inning.
Kaitlyn Curran hopped into the right-handed batter’s box with one out, looking to start a rally. The senior found a pitch to drive, smacking a single to put the winning run on first. A passed ball and a dropped third strike allowed Curran to reach third, still with just one out in the inning.
Rowan Cook was next up for the Rams, already with two hits on the night. The freshman knew the situation, pulling a pitch to the shortstop and watching as Curran easily made it to home plate in time for a walk-off, 3-2 victory over the Crusaders.
“We’ve been working on situational hitting, as far as, like, runner on third base, less than two [outs], what can we do to get them in?” Granby head coach Mike Afflitto said. “[Cook] came through in that situation, just putting the ball hard somewhere, making the defense make a play.”
The game-winning RBI capped off a night where Cook went 2-for-4 at the plate with two singles, along with a run scored.
Kiki Gaj drove in Granby’s first two runs of the game, with a bases-loaded groundout in the second inning, and a single in the fourth. The junior finished 1-for-2 offensively with the pair of RBIs, along with a hit-by-pitch.
“[Gaj] jumped on a couple of pitches early,” Afflitto said. “Early in the season, she was a little more passive, but I liked how aggressive she was at the plate, realizing she got herself in some good counts, 1-0, 2-0, and then just really looked to put a good swing on it, and came up big for us twice with some big RBIs.”
The win didn’t come easily for the Rams, in large part due to multiple bases loaded opportunities that ended with either one or no runs being scored. Timely hitting was Granby’s kryptonite on Monday, leaving 10 runners on base in the win.
Whitinsville Christian held the lead early on, jumping out 1-0 after plating a run in the top of the first inning. Despite falling down to the lower seed and not converting an immediate response, the Rams stayed level-headed, confident that the runs would come.
“They’ve learned to not look at the seeds… like, there’s no seeds in the state tournament for them,” Afflitto said of his players. “[They came] in, knowing we were going to be in a tight game and [expected] it. Credit to them for having the correct attitude coming into a one-and-done, tournament-type deal.”
A huge reason for the eventual victory for Granby came from a great outing by starting pitcher Meredith Bartosz in the circle. The junior threw all seven innings for her squad, allowing five hits and two runs while striking out five batters and not issuing any free passes in the win.
The Crusaders’ coaches alerted the umpires at Monday’s contest that they believed Bartosz’s pitching motion was illegal, forcing them to correct the junior. Despite the controversy, Bartosz remained locked in, putting together a great night for her team.
“That’s how [Bartosz has] been, she’s just cool, calm and collected,” Afflitto said. “She moves on, she moves forward. She really takes it to heart that she’s in complete control when the ball’s in her hand in the circle. Nice to see out of her just to stay composed for all seven [innings].”
With the win, the Rams now advance to the Round of 16, set to take on No. 22 Holbrook, who upset No. 11 Turners Falls 9-5 on Sunday. The next matchup is slated for Thursday, May 4, at 3:30 p.m., with Granby back at home.
“It’s just understanding that every game moving forward is going to be a tight game,” Afflitto said. “We’re going to need to continue to execute and make plays if we want to come out on top on [Thursday].”
Hampshire 12, Monument Mountain 0 — Ryanne Dubay was dominant in the circle for the Raiders in their Division 4 Round of 32 matchup, allowing just one hit in six innings with 12 strikeouts.
Reagan Dubay smashed a home run and tallied a pair of RBIs offensively in the win, reaching base four total times with three walks. Allison St. Pierre had two RBIs of her own, tallying two hits and a run scored.
Up next for Hampshire is the Round of 16, set to take on No. 15 Sandwich on Thursday, May 4, at 3:30 p.m. at home.
Hopedale 18, Smith Academy 1 — The Falcons struggled to keep up in a tough matchup in the Division 5 Round of 32.
Marissa Belina had one hit and scored one run in the loss, while Madelyn Barrett tallied one hit of her own and one RBI.
Smith Academy rounds out the year 12-5.
Apponequet 18, Belchertown 1 — The Orioles struggled in all facets against a tough opponent in the Division 3 Round of 32.
Kina Roy tallied the lone hit of the night in the five-inning loss.
Belchertown’s record finishes at 12-8.
Weekend Results
Baseball
Blue Hills RVT 7, Smith Voc. 0 — The Vikings struggled to get the bats going on Sunday in their Division 4 preliminary round matchup.
Cayden Dionne tallied the team’s lone hit of the night in the loss.
Smith Voc. finished the season with a 10-10 record.
Seekonk 4, Hampshire 0 — The Raiders came up short in Sunday’s pitcher’s duel in the Round of 32 of Division 4.
Colin Hogan threw a complete game in the loss, allowing three earned runs. Joe Moro finished his night with a triple and a single for two of his team’s three hits.
Hampshire’s loss ends its year 10-10 overall.
