Classical Softball Team sees Season End vs. Waltham
By Joyce Erekson, The Daily Item of Lynn, Thursday, June 2, 2005

WALTHAM - The Classical High softball team had one bad inning in its Division 1 preliminary round matchup against Waltham on Wednesday, but it provided the Hawks with all the opportunity they would need to rally from three runs down and win the game, 5-4.
     For a while, it looked like the Rams might be making the trip to neighboring Peabody today to face Bishop Fenwick in the first round, but an early 3-0 lead wasn't enough to withstand a combination of two errors, a walk, a passed ball, a wild pitch and a couple of clutch hits by Waltham.
     "One inning. That was it," Classical coach Chris Warren said. "How many earned runs did they get, maybe one or two? We had a bunch of chances early in the game to put the nail in the coffin, but we didn't get the big hit to seal the deal."
     The Hawks threatened in the second inning with runners on second and third base with no outs, but freshman pitcher Afton Dean came back to fan the next two batters and get the third to pop out to shortstop.
     Classical dodged another bullet in the third when, with a runner on first base, the No. 2 hitter, Kristen Dooley, bunted. Catcher Stacey Sport got to the ball in a hurry and nailed Dooley at first. First baseman Lauren Kolodziej fired the ball over to third for the double play.
     "We got out of a bunch of jams," Warren said. "We played well defensively. But a few times this year we've had that one mental breakdown and when you hit June, you can't do that, or you're out (of the tournament)."
     Classical (10-11) went up 1-0 in the second inning when Cierra Campbell scampered home on a passed ball after reaching on an error. The Rams added another run in the third inning when Savanna Clemens hustled to third on a two-base throwing error. She ended up scoring when Courtney King walked with the bases loaded.
     Classical upped its lead to 3-0 in the top of the fourth inning when Ashia Holcombe singled and ended up scoring on a fielder's choice by Clemens.
     The bottom of the fourth was something the Rams would just as soon forget. Waltham made the combination of miscues and pitching woes hurt with a couple of timely hits, including an RBI triple by Elise Dooley and a two-run double to center by Michelle Torres.
     "We didn't play our best game," Waltham coach Brenda Burke said. "They (Classical) took advantage of those opportunities. That's the sign of a good team, taking advantage of missed opportunities."
     It was an all freshman matchup on the mound, with Classical's Dean going the distance, allowing eight hits and striking out five. Dean flashed the leather in the fifth inning when she successfully handled three consecutive come-backers for a one-two-three inning. Waltham pitcher Renee LeBlanc seemed to pick up steam as the innings wore on. She only allowed three hits, but walked six. She also hit a batter (Jen Allder) in the last inning, and it had the potential to be costly when Allder came around to score to cut the lead to 5-4. LeBlanc put the brakes on the rally by getting the final two batters to pop up to third base.
     "She's a competitor," Burke said. "When she gets in a situation that's stressful, it seems to motivate her."
     Burke said Waltham and Classical are similar teams, in that both are young and both felt the lack of experience at times yesterday.
     Waltham plays Bishop Fenwick today at Fenwick.

Back to Home Page