Southwick’s Katelyn Sylvia attempts to beat the tag of the Hamsphire infielder. (Photo by Chris Putz)
AMHERST – The Southwick-Tolland Regional High School softball team’s sensational run has come to an end.
Freshman pitcher Emily Lachtara and No. 5 Southwick battled for seven innings, but fell prey to a few timely hits and ultimately lost to top-seeded Hampshire, 3-0, in a Western Massachusetts Division 2 softball semifinal Tuesday at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst.
Hampshire (18-3) scored the game’s only runs in the bottom of the fourth inning.
Southwick-Tolland Regional High School’s Morgan Harriman, left, and Jennifer Yellin (6) perform a ritual in between innings Tuesday. (Photo by Chris Putz
Nicole Buzzee led off the bottom of the inning with a soft base hit that dropped in front of the infielder for a single and scored a run. Marissa Sarna-McCarthy snared a bleeder down just past the first base bag out along the right outfield line. A two-run single from Anna Dziok a short time later made it 3-0.
“It’s not like they hit the ball (hard) – they put (it) in play,” Southwick coach Todd Downie said. “We played well. They had timely hitting.”
Southwick freshman pitcher Emily Lachtara delivered a superb effort on the mound. Lachtara scattered eight hits and struck out eight batters.
“I’m happy with the way we played,” Downie said. “We kept our composure, and fought hard.”
Southwick (17-5) had a few opportunities to push some runs across – Sydney Rogers, Katelyn Sylvia, and Alyssa Kelleher each had a hit Tuesday – but nothing ever materialized.
