DANFORTH, Maine — Showing a penchant for bashing big hits when needed, the No. 6 East Grand softball team blasted its way to an 11-8 victory over No. 11 Fort Fairfield Wednesday afternoon in a Class D North preliminary playoff.
With the win, the Vikings (12-2) advanced to Thursday’s quarterfinal matchup against No. 3 Katahdin (11-3) in a game played at noon. Fort Fairfield, which rallied in the top of the seventh inning to plate four runs, came up short in its upset bid. The Tigers finish their season with a 6-9 record.
Senior Hayliegh Shay picked up the pitching win as she scattered seven hits and two walks, with four strikeouts. Shay tossed the first four innings, and with the Vikings up 11-3, coach Shawn Beaudoin made a pitching change, sending sophomore Jordyn Cowger to the pitching circle.
Cowger allowed four hits and seven walks, with two strikeouts as she pitched into the seventh inning before Shay returned to the circle to close out the game.
“Hayliegh has been hurting a bit this season, as she has thrown a lot of pitches,” coach Beaudoin said of the pitching change. “I felt if I could save her 20 or 30 pitches today, it would help us against Katahdin (Thursday).”
Kianna Caissie led East Grand with three singles and two runs scored, while Shay added two doubles and scored two runs. Jenny Crone had a triple and single, while Cowger, Mallory Gilman, Amanda Massey and Natalie Golding each had a single.
For Fort Fairfield, Sadie Edgecomb led the way with a double and two singles, while Makalia Beck doubled and singled; Hunter St. Pierre had two singles and Kayla Tisdale and Cammie King-Demerchant each had one single.
The Tigers took an early 2-0 lead in the top of the first inning, but East Grand answered with three runs in the home half of the frame.
“We never quit the whole game,” Fort Fairfield coach Vaughn McLaughlin said. “We left a crazy amount of runners on the bases today. We also had that one bad inning where mistakes hurt us.”
That one bad inning came in the bottom of the second inning as East Grand erupted for eight runs, taking advantage of a couple of Fort Fairfield miscues.
Wednesday’s game also featured a couple of unusual plays as an East Grand base runner was ruled out for not allowing Tiger shortstop King-Demerchant to complete a throw to first for a double play.
Later in the game, Tiger baserunner Edgecomb was called out for interference as she was struck by a line drive as she was running to third base.
Despite the win, coach Beaudoin said his team needed to do a better job of staying mentally tough throughout an entire game.
“The girls got a little bit lax on us after we got out to a lead,” Beaudoin said. “They have done that in the last couple of games we played. They have to learn to focus and finish.”
(Photos by Joseph Cyr)
