SOUTH DEERFIELD ― Facing off against an all-too-familiar opponent, Frontier came out on top in a battle between two elite pitchers.
No. 8 Frontier softball took the first lead on Wednesday and remained in front as the Red Hawks shut out No. 9 South Hadley, 5-0, in the MIAA Division IV Round of 16.
Frontier (14-8) advances to the Div. IV quarterfinals where the Red Hawks will face No. 1 Hampshire on Sunday, June 8 at 4:30 p.m.
The Red Hawks grabbed the lead in the opening inning when Delaney Fifield drilled a fly ball to right-center with a runner on second, scoring a RBI double for the senior.
“(I wanted to) go yard, if I’m going to be honest,” Fifield said. “I was practicing a lot yesterday, keeping my hands to it and noticing when (Isabella Schaeffer) throws that rise ball.
“When I got in the box, I definitely wanted to have confidence and I did. I was a little shaky taking that first strike, but I knew the next one I was going to get, I had to put it somewhere.”
Raina Wonsey tore through the first three innings without a walk or hit surrendered. Schaeffer bounced back in the second with a one-two-three inning, but after allowing a leadoff walk in the third, a fielding error on a deep fly ball from Fifield allowed Ashley Taylor to score from second.
Taylor had gotten herself into scoring position after stealing second on the pitch prior, but the error allowed her to score standing up and Fifield to advance to third.
Fifield highlighted how important it is to manufacture runs out of nothing, to pressure the opposition into a mistake and to pounce during those crucial moments.
“It can make or break a game, honestly,” Fifield said. “When I reached third on that error, my coach was actually yelling at me to go (home) because the catcher wasn’t paying attention.
“That’s a little thing where we could have had another run. In those situations, especially against a team like this where you have such a solid pitcher, you need to take advantage of every little mistake they make and be aggressive.”
Both pitchers made short work of the middle innings, but the Red Hawks broke out in the sixth and secured their advantage with a three-run frame.
Abigail Schreiber brought in two runs with a bunt single after Frontier had loaded the bases. Another run scored later in the frame when Addie Ehle scored from third on a passed ball.
With a five-run cushion behind her, Wonsey sat the Tigers down in order in the seventh, collecting her 10th and 11th strikeouts of the game while capturing the win. The Red Hawks’ eighth-grader allowed just one hit en route to her first career seven-inning shut out and her third overall.
“For me, (pitching with a small lead) isn’t really a big issue — I know my team’s there behind me, if there’s a hit, they’re going to get it,” Wonsey said confidently. “I’m just doing whatever I can do, throwing strikes, (Fifield)’s framing is awesome (behind the plate) and I’m just doing what I can do.”
The two sides had faced each other twice in the past three weeks, with Frontier winning the late regular season matchup on May 19 before dropping the Western Mass. Class B semifinal to South Hadley on May 25.
“Sometimes it can be beneficial to go against the team you don’t know and you just come in with raw, that can be great sometimes,” Frontier softball coach Garrett Deane said. “You don’t get yourselves overthinking it, psyched out. But we knew (South Hadley)… we really know them well.
“We started preparing for them early in many different ways and the girls were focused… (Schaeffer) is a fantastic pitcher, really shut us down in the last game. We knew it was going to be a couple runs (that would) win the game.”
South Hadley finished its season with a 14-9 record. The Tigers graduate five seniors this spring, including their Super 7 pitcher. Schaeffer will play collegiate softball next year for Westfield State, joining several former Western Mass. softball players on the Owls’ roster.
