Record, Blue Devils Shut Out Hurricanes
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Walking the first three hitters of the game wasn’t the game plan for Drury sophomore Catherine Record, but that’s just what happened. Luckily for her, sophomore catcher Amber Iacuessa made two good defensive plays to keep the Hurricanes in check.
That set the tone in the Blue Devils' 9-0 home win over Hoosac in the first round of the Division 2 Western Mass. tournament on Thursday. Drury, seeded eighth in the tournament, now advances to play at top-seeded Palmer at 4 p.m. on Saturday.
After Record walked leadoff hitter Kassandra Kazimierczak, Iacuessa threw behind the Hurricanes' runner at first and picked her off for Drury’s first out of the game. Record then walked senior Allie Pansecchi, who tried to press the issue by stealing second base. Iacuessa gunned her down for the second out of the inning, though, and after a third straight walk to Tori Rumbolt, Record got out of the inning by getting Alexis Bushika to pop up to short to end the inning.
"The tone for the game was established in the first inning when Iacuessa threw out two consecutive runners", Blue Devils head coach Mary Ann Maroni said. "Amber had quite a night both offensively and defensively. The team knew that wanting to win was not good enough, they had to execute.
"I think the girls were unhappy with the result of the last Drury-Hoosac game. They dedicated themselves to play a better brand of softball, and they were extremely focused and enthusiastic about today's game."
The Blue Devils (13-7) defeated the ninth-seeded Hurricanes 2-0 at home the first time the two teams met this season. Hoosac (11-10) then came back to earn a 5-1 victory on its home field three weeks later thanks to a dominating pitcher performance from sophomore Caroline Tomkowicz.
Tomkowicz only allowed two hits in that game, but Drury would fare much better against her the second time around. The Devils would get all the runs they needed in the bottom of the first inning. Record reached on an error and advanced to second base on a wild pitch. Junior Laryssa LaPointe then singled, giving the hosts runners on first and third base with no outs. Senior Lyndsey DeGrenier (.462 batting avg.) delivered a sacrifice fly to score Record, and Drury never looked back. LaPointe came around to score on a groundout, giving the Blue Devils a 2-0 lead after one inning of play.
The Hurricanes never really threatened Record, as she surrendered only two hits while striking out six and walking five. The win brings her record to 13-6 this year. Tomkowicz (6-4) took the loss, going four-plus innings, giving up five runs with two strikeouts and one walk.
That set the tone in the Blue Devils' 9-0 home win over Hoosac in the first round of the Division 2 Western Mass. tournament on Thursday. Drury, seeded eighth in the tournament, now advances to play at top-seeded Palmer at 4 p.m. on Saturday.
After Record walked leadoff hitter Kassandra Kazimierczak, Iacuessa threw behind the Hurricanes' runner at first and picked her off for Drury’s first out of the game. Record then walked senior Allie Pansecchi, who tried to press the issue by stealing second base. Iacuessa gunned her down for the second out of the inning, though, and after a third straight walk to Tori Rumbolt, Record got out of the inning by getting Alexis Bushika to pop up to short to end the inning.
"The tone for the game was established in the first inning when Iacuessa threw out two consecutive runners", Blue Devils head coach Mary Ann Maroni said. "Amber had quite a night both offensively and defensively. The team knew that wanting to win was not good enough, they had to execute.
"I think the girls were unhappy with the result of the last Drury-Hoosac game. They dedicated themselves to play a better brand of softball, and they were extremely focused and enthusiastic about today's game."
The Blue Devils (13-7) defeated the ninth-seeded Hurricanes 2-0 at home the first time the two teams met this season. Hoosac (11-10) then came back to earn a 5-1 victory on its home field three weeks later thanks to a dominating pitcher performance from sophomore Caroline Tomkowicz.
Tomkowicz only allowed two hits in that game, but Drury would fare much better against her the second time around. The Devils would get all the runs they needed in the bottom of the first inning. Record reached on an error and advanced to second base on a wild pitch. Junior Laryssa LaPointe then singled, giving the hosts runners on first and third base with no outs. Senior Lyndsey DeGrenier (.462 batting avg.) delivered a sacrifice fly to score Record, and Drury never looked back. LaPointe came around to score on a groundout, giving the Blue Devils a 2-0 lead after one inning of play.
The Hurricanes never really threatened Record, as she surrendered only two hits while striking out six and walking five. The win brings her record to 13-6 this year. Tomkowicz (6-4) took the loss, going four-plus innings, giving up five runs with two strikeouts and one walk.
Drury blew the game open in the fifth by scoring five runs on three hits and three Hoosac errors. LaPointe went 2 for 4 with three runs scored, while senior Danielle Cardinal collected two hits and three RBI. After scoring another run in the seventh, Record struck out the final two Hurricane hitters to end the game.