Stansfield, Bishop Homer as Hoosac Stays Unbeaten
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Logan Stansfield’s three-run home run punctuated an 11-run second inning and sent the Hoosac Valley softball team on to a 21-4 win over Drury on Fran Millard Field on Friday afternoon.
The Hurricanes (3-0) pounded out 13 hits and upped their season scoring average to 17 runs per game.
Rylie Bishop added a two-run homer, and the Hurricanes collected four doubles.
But for Hoosac Valley coach Mike Ameen, the power was just a bonus.
"We put the ball in play, which is good," Ameen said. "I told them at the beginning of the year, we’ve got probably the quickest team I’ve had the last few years. So I told them that we just have to try to put pressure on people. And if you can’t do that unless you put the ball in play.
"It’s ironic to get two home runs. But our philosophy is really to try to make contact. The other stuff is a byproduct of that, which is a good thing."
Drury (0-2) actually generated the game’s first run with some small ball of its own.
Caitlin Tatro led off the bottom of the first with a walk and moved up on Abby Lear’s sacrifice bunt. After a wild pitch got Tatro to third, she came home on a passed ball to make it 1-0.
But Hoosac Valley wiped that lead off the board with its big second inning.
The Blue Devils helped the Hurricanes with five errors in the inning to make all 11 runs unearned. But the rally also featured a pair of two-run doubles by Lauren Faucher and Kelsey Wohrle and the three-run laser off the bat of Stansfield.
Bishop’s bomb came in a four-run third, and Katie Braman doubled in a run in the top of the fourth.
It was 21-1 when the Blue Devils rallied for a few in the bottom of the fifth. Tatro singled and scored to finish a 2-for-2 day at the plate in the inning.
Katie Booth allowed just one earned run it taking the loss in the circle for the Blue Devils, who go to Taconic on Tuesday.
Madi Puppolo struck out six and allowed one earned run to get the win for Hoosac Valley.
Puppolo also walked five and stranded six over five innings, including leaving the bases loaded in the bottom of the third.
"She has the ability to regroup and refocus," Ameen said of the sophomore pitcher. "She went 3-0 on one batter and came back and got her. She had a couple of bad plays or a couple of bad batters and she came back.
"It’s also, you know, our third game in a row. We played Wednesday, Thursday and today. So she was running out of gas a little bit toward the end. … She’s got a good heart and strong determination. I think she can battle through some adversity."
Hoosac Valley will look to stay unbeaten Tuesday when it goes to Monument Mountain.