Kelsey Bouchard slides in safely at home plate on a passed ball for the first Westfield run in a 13-3 mercy win over Maine in the Little League Softball East Regionals Wednesday in Jenkins Township, Penn. (Submitted photo)
JENKINS TOWNSHIP, PENN. – Fairfield (Conn.) successfully executed a delayed steal at home plate to walk off with a pulse-pounding 3-2 victory in the bottom of the seventh inning of a Little League Softball 10-Year-Old East Regional New England pool play game Wednesday, knocking Rhode Island from the ranks of the unbeatens and bouncing Westfield out of the semifinal race – all at the same time.
A win from Rhode Island, who entered the day 3-0, would have left Fairfield with a record of 2-2. Westfield, which improved to 2-2 with a victory Wednesday, would have qualified for the semifinals, based on their head-to-head win over Fairfield.
Instead, an extra inning win by the same team they defeated three days earlier sealed their fate.
“We finished fifth out of nine teams, we didn’t get blown out of any game,” Westfield Little League 10-Year-Old All-Stars manager Tony Bouchard said. “A play here, a play there, and we could have been 4-0.”
Earlier Wednesday morning, Westfield took care of business in defeating Maine 13-3.
It was a close game early as Westfield and Maine exchanged one run apiece in each of the first and second innings. The Whip City’s All-Stars though, exploded for four runs in the top of the third inning and seven more in the fifth to pull away.
Marleigh Monroe struck out 13 batters for Westfield, and Kelsey Bouchard went 4-for-4 with three runs scored.
Monroe also had two hits.
“This little team just kept winning, just kept grinding, pushing the envelope of our potential,” manager Bouchard said. “Our girls are still learning. We have some key veterans, but some of our lower bench have a lot to learn. From the start of the tournament, we grew as a team. We came out here and showed Massachusetts can handle themselves in the tournament.”
Even the tournament director was impressed.
“We couldn’t have asked for more out of the kids and their coaches,” East Regional tournament co-ordinator Paul McGarry said. “These kids made a lot of good friends. I think it was a pretty good experience that made a lifetime of memories.”
