WESTFIELD — Cassie Dion picked an opportune time to record just her second strikeout of the game on Monday.
With two outs and the tying runs on base in the bottom of the eighth inning of her first-ever state tournament game, the Hopkins Academy seventh grader buckled down. After just missing a punchout two pitches earlier, Dion hurled a 3-2 pitch to Westfield Tech’s Kailyn Hawley that caught the edge of the plate and wrapped up a wild victory.
Thanks to a four-run top of the eighth inning, the 19th-seeded Golden Hawks held off the 14th-seeded Tigers, 8-6, at Whitney Field to advance into the MIAA Division 5 Round of 16.
“She doesn’t really shake,” lauded Hopkins Academy coach Paula Cristoforo of Dion. “She’s very stoic. She doesn’t even care to know the score or how many outs, that’s just distraction. She stays locked in. I’m really proud of her.”
Hopkins (11-8) will turn around quickly and travel to play at No. 3 West Boylston (18-3) in the Round of 16 on Tuesday at 4 p.m.
“Hopefully we can push through it and get the win,” said Hopkins third baseman Cassidi Mushenski, who was 4-for-5 with two RBIs in the win. “I don’t think we really get intimidated by anyone. We just have to go out and play our game and see what happens.”
Monday’s Round of 32 victory didn’t come easily. The Hawks never trailed, but held a slim 4-3 lead into the bottom of the seventh inning. After getting two quick outs, the visitors were unable to close it out however, as Hawley reached on an infield single for Westfield Tech and took second on an error. She eventually came around to score on another error, tying the game and forcing extra innings.
“We’ve had a few situations this year, we played in a tougher division so we’re used to being in these tougher situations,” Cristoforo said. “And the one thing that this team is really good about is, they pick each other up. They’re relentless.”
Indeed, Hopkins went right back to work at the plate in the top of the eighth inning. Jessica Markowski singled and took second on another base hit from Lilly Ellia. An overthrow from the outfield went out of play, allowing Markowski to come around and score the go-ahead run. Ellia made it 6-4 when Brooke Rochon reached on a two-out error, and Taylor Barry followed with a double to put a pair in scoring position.
Mushenski delivered the big blow, clubbing a two-run single that extended the Hawks’ lead to 8-4.
“It was tough because we were so close to getting the game over in the seventh, and then all of a sudden we had to go back and keep playing,” Mushenski explained. “But it felt so good to get all those runs, and have that safety net just in case.
“The beginning of the season was kind of tough for me, but the last couple of games I’ve been able to consistently put the ball in play and get some hits,” she continued. “It’s been nice to square the ball up and help the team.”
As was the theme of the day, things couldn’t end without a little drama in the bottom of the eighth. Westfield Tech’s Allyssa Slack opened up the frame with a solo home run to make it 8-5. After two quick outs, a single and an error brought the tying run to the plate in the form of Taylor Parker. She extended the game with an RBI single to bring the Tigers within 8-6, but Dion stranded two on the bases with her game-ending punchout.
“We did make a few errors, normally we don’t… but this is a very high pressure situation for our kids,” Cristoforo said. “We’re a very young team, we only have one senior, and we’ve never made it this far before as a program.”
Dion didn’t walk a batter to go with her two strikeouts in eight innings of work in the circle. Barry finished 3-for-5 with an RBI and two runs scored, while Maggie Potter had two hits and a run scored and Rochon smacked a booming triple over the left fielder’s head in the fifth inning and scored twice.
Hopkins took a 3-0 lead in the top of the second inning. With the bases loaded, Markowski drove in a run to make it 1-0 before Izzy Palmisano, who made a pair of outstanding running catches in left field, reached on an error to second base that plated a pair of runs.
After the Tigers answered with two in the bottom of the second, Rochon’s triple followed by an RBI single from Barry made it a 4-2 game in the fifth. The Tigers answered with another run in the bottom of the inning, then forced extras with the seventh-inning rally.
Cristoforo said that while the team doesn’t know much about third-seeded West Boylston, which beat No. 30 Mount Everett via a 10-1 score on Monday, she’s confident they can go to Central Mass. and compete.
“We realize we have to stay up to play West Boylston,” she began. “It’s a quick turnaround. This win gets us ready for that game. I know they’re a very good team, you aren’t seeded third for nothing, but we’re going to go out and give it our best. If we can come out and hit the ball, I think we can be successful.”