SOUTHWICK – It could be said she has nerves of steel in hitting two long balls skyward, but whatever words are used to describe Frontier shortstop Skyler Steele, perfect should most definitely be one of them.
Steele smashed two home runs in going 4-for-4 at the plate Wednesday, collecting four RBIs and four runs as Frontier defeated Southwick 16-3 in five innings.
The Red Hawks mashed seven extra base hits.
“We’ve been on a little bit of a losing streak,” said Southwick first-year coach Vinnie Guiel, whose team fell to 5-8 with their third straight loss Wednesday, “but that’s a good team we just played. Frontier is a very good team. Everybody in their lineup, all nine batters can hit. We did good. I’m proud of them.”
Save for one very large inning, the two teams were evenly matched at times. Frontier struck first.
Ashley Taylor led off the game with a single through the right side, and advanced to second base on a wild pitch. Steele followed with a bloop single to shallow right field. An error on the throw back to the infield allowed Frontier’s first run to score. With one out, Liv Machon belted a liner through the middle, scoring their second run. The inning’s next batter, Raine Wonsey hit a run-scoring double to right field. Southwick limited the damage to three runs as the Rams turned a double play to end the inning, catching a fly ball in center field and doubling up the runner at second base.
Southwick attempted to battle back. The Rams loaded the bases with consecutive singles from Anna Novak and Ellie Rolandini to begin the bottom of the first inning, and a two-out walk from Brooke Comee. Frontier pitcher Ashley Taylor (7 Ks) escaped unscathed, however, with an inning-ending strikeout.
The hits kept coming for Frontier in the second inning. The biggest hits of the inning included an RBI double from Addie Ehle, a Machon RBI triple, and a Steele 3-run homer. After just 1 1/2 innings, the Red Hawks led 10-0.
Although Southwick pitcher Anna Novak ended the second inning and opened the third inning with a strikeout, Frontier continued to attack the ball. Aided by doubles from Ashley Taylor and Delaney Fifield, the second of which drove in two runs, and a Machon RBI single, the Red Hawks built a 13-0 lead through 2 1/2 innings.
Trailing by 13 runs, Southwick finally broke through.
With one out in the bottom of the third inning, Rolandini doubled to deep center field. Alyssa Bohn singled and stole second. Comee stepped to the plate and delivered, blasting a thunderous 3-run home run to straightaway center field to trim the Rams deficit to 13-3.
“Honestly, I really wasn’t thinking. …That pitcher was throwing really good,” said Comee, a seventh grader. “As soon as I hit it, I could tell it was a solid hit, and I was really proud.”
Despite the brief reprieve, Frontier proved to be unstoppable. The Red Hawks scored three more runs in the top of the fifth inning. Steele homered for the second time in the game, a solo shot, and Sophia Pinardi had a two-run, sacrifice fly. Novak recorded her seventh strikeout of the game to end the inning.
With Wednesday’s seven-strikeout performance, Novak increased her strikeout total for the season to 115, good for third in the entire state of Massachusetts.
“Everything I do with softball is so meaningful; my love for softball is bigger than everything,” Novak said. “My goal is to be better than yesterday.”
Comee nearly homered for the second time in the game in the bottom of the fifth inning, launching a ball off the left center field fence, just a few inches short of leaving the yard. The hit resulted in a double.
Although Southwick has been in rebuild mode with a team primarily made up of seventh and eighth graders – the roster consists of just one senior and two juniors – the Rams have surpassed their win total from each of the last few seasons.
“We’re just trying to build that mental toughness, making sure that people aren’t quitting, playing a full seven innings,” coach Guiel said. “The last couple years we’ve been struggling here. Coming in as a new coach with a new staff, there’s going to be a learning curve. I think that the girls are picking up on it right away.
“We’ve been a little hot and cold this season,” he said, “but we have a couple games left here in the regular season. We’re going to try to … get the bus moving.”
