Lancers rebound after tough loss, clinch share of Valley Wheel |
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Longmeadow pitcher Jillian Stockley delivers a pitch in her shutout of East Longmeadow to capture a share of the Valley Wheel title. Reminder Publications photo by Chris Maza
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May 28, 2012
By Chris Maza
chrism@thereminder.com
EAST LONGMEADOW — Ah, the resiliency of youth.
With a tremendous changeup and a thunderous bat, freshman Jillian Stockley vaulted the Longmeadow softball team into a tie for the Valley Wheel title as the Lancers avenged their loss from a day earlier, blanking East Longmeadow 2-0 on May 25.
After losing to the Spartans the day before 6-0, Stockley exacted revenge, allowing just three hits in a complete game shutout and blasting a no-doubt first-inning solo home run over the left field fence to lift the Lancers to 6-1 in the league and deal East Longmeadow its first Valley Wheel loss of the season.
"This one was huge because we were playing a very good team and we played very poorly yesterday," Longmeadow Head Coach Steve Marcil said. "I challenged them [by saying,] 'Good teams bounce back. Let's see how far we've come by whether or not we're able to bounce back,' and they did. They were all tough, they were gutsy. In a game that has so much on the line and every call, every ball, every strike means something, everybody kept their focus. Everybody stayed on course and played very well."
For the Lancers, on top of the excitement of the share of a league championship, the win was a big morale booster, Marcil said.
"This is a huge confidence booster, especially after yesterday, losing 6-0," he said. "If you look at the stat line for that game, Stockley gives up one hit, strikes out 10, but we lose 6-0, so coming back and playing well today was just huge."
Shortstop Allison Mishol and catcher Sarah Whitney, both of whom are also freshmen, recorded two hits apiece. Mishol's first hit to left drove in the game's second run. In total, freshmen contributed six of the Lancers' 10 hits.
Senior Cady Deary scored the game's second run as part of a 2-for-3 afternoon that included a first-inning double.
Madison Grande pitched well enough to win for the Spartans, settling down after a rough first inning. After giving up two runs on four hits in the first, she cruised, scattering six hits over the remaining six innings while striking out five.
The Spartans could give Grande nothing in terms of run support, however. Stockley featured a devastating changeup all game long, fooling batters to the tune of eight strikeouts and keeping others on their front foot, inducing weak ground balls.
"Sometimes she struggles with her changeup and getting it over [the plate]," Marcil said. "Today she was able to get it over and get us big outs. She's had a lot of great games this season, but this one might have been her best."
She also got some help from her friends in the field.
After giving up a single to lead off the game to Rebecca Mercieri, Stockley gave up a single to right field to Emily Logan. Mercieri tried to go from first to third on the play, but Katie Duquette came up gunning and threw her out.
In the fifth inning, Cassandra Martin also made a diving catch on a foul ball as part of a 1-2-3 inning.
Quality defense was on display for both sides as two key plays in the sixth inning kept the Spartans within two runs late in the game. Alexa Foley made up for not being able to track down Mishol's first-inning hit with a pair of nice outfield assists.
After Deary led off the inning with a single, Mishol again hit a shot to left. Foley collected the ball and threw a strike to nail Deary to third. Heley Northup followed with a single to left of her own, sending Mishol sprinting to home from second. Foley got the ball in from left with a throw that Grande cut off and tossed to Whitney, who was blocking the plate. Mishol collided with Whitney's leg and went tumbling, never touching the plate and was tagged out.
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