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04/09/2017 12:00 AMAs the adage goes: April wins are worth the same as end-of-season wins. Valley Regional and Old Saybrook’s softball squads are especially hungry for wins this spring after both teams missed the playoffs last year. So when the Warriors squared off against the Rams at Old Saybrook High School on April 6, both sides were looking to notch a big victory early in the season.
Valley entered the contest having lost its season opener to Haddam-Killingworth, 13-11. Old Saybrook took a 12-0 defeat to North Branford in its first game, but then routed Portland 23-2 to enter the matchup with an even record. In the matchup between the two Shoreline Conference rivals, the Warriors defeated Old Saybrook 19-4 in six innings thanks to a huge offensive outburst and strong pitching performance from freshman Addy Bullis.
Valley Head Coach Ken Wilson was pleased with his team’s offensive attack, especially since pitching is usually ahead of the hitters early in the season. It was a cold, blustery day on the ballfield, yet the Warriors still batted around in two innings.
“For the second game of the season, I thought we played really well,” said Coach Wilson. “We took advantage of some situations that they gave to us, which is what I want the student-athletes to do. We manufactured runs. We also hit the ball very hard today, which is very good. We had a lot of solid hits.”
While Old Saybrook’s first-year Head Coach Katelyn Flanagan wasn’t pleased with the final result, she still felt proud about how hard the Rams fought in the loss.
“We came out fired up, and we came out swinging. So I was proud of our girls for coming out hungry today,” Flanagan said. “Valley’s a good program; they always have been. They put the ball in play, and they rattled us a little bit. We started making some mental mistakes and some physical mistakes, and they just kept on hitting. They out-competed us today.”
The Warriors’ offense manufactured a couple of runs in the top of the first inning. Freshman left fielder Riley Millburne led off by reaching on a passed ball after striking out. Sophomore first baseman Olivia Kollmer stung a double to plate Millburne and eventually scored on a fielder’s choice for a 2-0 Valley advantage.
Valley tacked on two more in the top of the second inning. Junior catcher Rylee DaRe laced a double to right field and came around on a single by freshman third baseman Lauren Allen, who later scored on a single by a sophomore second baseman Allysah Tisdale that made it 4-0.
Old Saybrook responded in the bottom of the second by scoring two runs to cut it 4-2. Senior catcher Megan Schulmeister and senior center fielder Hannah LeMire both came home on a hot-shot single to left-center by sophomore left fielder Sarah Howley.
Rams’ junior pitcher Carly Michaud held the Warriors scoreless in the top of the third, and it looked like Old Saybrook might turn the game around. However, the freshman Bullis retired the Rams in order in the bottom half of the inning.
Valley then broke loose for five runs in the top of the fourth. Allen and Tisdale drew walks to open the frame, after which Millburne loaded the bases with a single up the middle. Michaud looked like she might be able to limit the damage after striking out Kollmer and getting Bullis to hit a sacrifice fly that made it 5-2, but the Warriors took advantage of a few Old Saybrook miscues and scored four more runs to extend their lead to 9-2.
Still, Old Saybrook mustered two more runs in the contest. The first one came in the bottom of the fourth inning when Schulmeister hit a ringing double and took third on throwing error, setting up a sacrifice fly for senior right fielder Tiffany Kiako. The Rams scored their final run in the fifth as Michaud led off with a solo home run deep to right field.
However, the Warriors put the game away by sending 12 batters to the plate and scoring eight runs in the top of the sixth inning. When Old Saybrook was unable to score in the bottom half, the mercy rule went into effect, and Valley walked off the field with the 19-4 victory.
A major part of Valley’s offensive outburst was the return of starting catcher DaRe, who had missed the team’s first game with an injury. After sitting out the loss to Haddam-Killingworth, DaRe felt excited to be on the field again, and her excitement showed in her performance at the plate as DaRe went 4-for-4 with a walk, two runs scored, and a pair of RBI.
“It’s awesome. It’s really nice to be playing again,” DaRe said. “I had to adjust and find a happy medium for when I was going to swing. I had to be patient. It was good. I got my confidence up in my first game.”
Meanwhile, DaRe’s battery mate Bullis also turned in a great game by striking out seven and holding off the Rams’ offense at key points when the momentum could have swung back in their favor. Bullis changed speeds to keep the Old Saybrook batters guessing, and having her regular catcher behind the plate boosted her confidence.
“I’ve practiced my changeup a lot. Last year, I couldn’t get it over for a strike, but this year, it finally started clicking,” said Bullis. “I felt good. My team did really well behind me, so that was nice. It was good to have my catcher back.”
Valley’s athletes know that they’ll need more victories like this one in order to return to the postseason this spring. Senior captain shortstop Julia Jenkins feels that the tight-knit chemistry among the Warriors will play a major role in their quest to achieve that goal.
“We had a lot of team of team bonding activities prior to the season and that has helped us a tremendous amount,” said Jenkins, who was 2-for-4 with two runs scored and two RBI. “These girls are closer than in past seasons, I feel. So coming out and playing on the field, we’ve come together as one a lot faster than most teams.”
On the other side, Coach Flanagan took solace in the fact that it’s still early in the season and her athletes will have some chances to rebound from this defeat. LeMire went 2-for-3 with a run scored, while Howley was 1-for-3 with two RBI for Old Saybrook.
“They’re a good hitting team, and I don’t think our girls played their best today,” said Flanagan. “I absolutely know they didn’t play their best today, but we had little glimmers of success in there.”
Old Saybrook saw plenty of success when it defeated Portland by a 23-2 final on April 5. Chloe Root had two singles and a triple with five RBI; Schulmeister had two hits, including a double; while Sarah Lombardi and Michaud both hit a double to spur the lopsided victory over the Highlanders.
From the Sidelines
Valley Regional’s starting lineup against Old Saybrook featured freshman Riley Millburne in left field, sophomore Olivia Kollmer at first base, freshman Addy Bullis at pitcher, senior captain Julia Jenkins at shortstop, junior Alexandra Figuenick in center field, junior Rylee DaRe at catcher, sophomore Carlee Kirla in right field, freshman Lauren Allen at third base, and sophomore Allysah Tisdale at second base.
The day after they defeated Old Saybrook, the Warriors took a 7-4 home loss to Hale-Ray to move to 1-2 on the season.
Old Saybrook’s starting lineup consisted of senior Kirsten King at first base, senior Anna Joseph at shortstop, junior Chloe Root at third base, sophomore Maeve Foley at second base, senior Megan Schulmeister at catcher, senior Hannah LeMire in center field, senior Tiffany Kiako in right field, sophomore Sarah Howley in left field, and junior Carly Michaud at pitcher.