With Season Ending Victory Over Fox Lane, Somers Still has More to Prove

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On Saturday May 17, after Somers jumped out to a 10-0 lead, Fox Lane battled back to an 11-5 score. The bottom of the seventh, the situation did feel mildly tenuous. So when a pop foul crept up alongside the Somers dugout, Katherine Papa wasn’t taking any chances.

“I saw a ball in play that needed to be made into an out,” said the catcher, and after the amazing snag, Fox Lane followed soon enough in defeat.

Somers didn’t give the home team any time to settle in either. Julia Peanamanda reached on an infield hit, Katie Cole followed with another ground ball that resulted in a botched force attempt, and Caitlin Fitts knocked in the first run of the day with a single.

First and third, Somers then pulled off a double steal. Cole came home, and Kaleigh Conti closed the deal with a bloop single to right.

Boyle, on the other hand, was straight on when taking the mound with a 4-0 lead. Two ground outs and a strikeout put the bats back in the hands of the elephants.

Walks by Alyssa Pirraglia and Cole sandwiched a single by Peanamanda, and Somers stayed small from there. Papa’s ground out to the box brought in one, and Boyle’s lift to right made it a 6-0 game.

Turning over, an infield hit to start the bottom of the second proved no bother to Boyle. She reached back and struck out the side.

Onto the third, Somers loaded the bases with two outs, but Sophia Rodriguez got Pirraglia to fly out. So Boyle got back down to business. A strike out and ground outs to Cole and Pirraglia moved the game along.

The weather didn’t oblige, though. Thunder rang from above, and the 30 minute rule went into effect.

Upon return, the Somers offense took a little time to dry off. After Fitts grounded out and Boyle got robbed in left, pitching got the Tuskers out of the mini funk. Around a Conti single, Griggs, Morel and Pirraglia received free passes, and another run was in.

7-0, Peanamanda was glad to take the bat off her shoulder. The all field hitting lefty went up the middle for an 8-0 lead, and then Cole took one for the team. She got hit for the second at bat in a row, and Somers led 9-0.

Back with the ball in the fourth, Boyle weathered a little traffic. First and second with one out, the starter went off speed for a strikeout swinging and a ground ball to short reliably went as expected. Cole gobbling up another had Papa reveling in her pitcher’s ability to pinpoint the game. “She hits spots like nobody I’ve ever seen,” said the catcher.

At the same time, Papa can’t dismiss how Boyle is always ahead in the mental pitch count. “Her demeanor,” clarified Papa, “she gets on the mound and comes up like I’m going to strike out this girl no matter who it is.”

Mercy on everyone’s mind either way, the ten runs ceiling began with a Fitts walk, and singles by Gianna Peanamanda and Griggs. Not so fast, a Conti fly out to short center, and a strike out by Victoria Morel put the kindness on hold. But a walk by Pirraglia brought in run number ten, and a short day seemed imminent.

Not quite, Fox Lane wasn’t ready to go home and put two runs on Mia DiChiaro to extend the game. The change of course had Cole making the most of another at bat nonetheless.

This especially after taking two lumps in the batter's box and next having the ball break outside. “That’s what I’m always looking for. I take it to left,” said the shortstop, and Cole didn’t stop running until reaching third.

Papa knocked her friend in with a single, and 11-2 was still plenty to play with. The sentiment remained even when the Foxes added two more in the sixth.

A flukey play in the seventh added another, and with an out in the books on Papa’s play, the Tusker defense wasn’t done. A runner on first, DiChiaro induced a grounder to Griggs at third, and the throw to first had Somers sticking to their game plan. “We’re always looking for another out,” Cole revealed.

So in keeping, Fitts fired to second and caught the runner straying too far on the turn. “We do that all the time in practice,” said Cole.

The regular season ending on the play, last year’s run to the finals didn’t have Papa hanging her hat on the unexpected achievement. “We still have something to prove,” she concluded.