Wahconah's Vale-Cruz Named County MVP

After leading the Wahconah softball team to a Berkshire County North Division title, Avery Vale-Cruz Wednesday was named the most valuable player in the county by a vote of the league's coaches.

 

Vale-Cruz finished the year with an earned run average of 1.25 and 139 strikeouts in 67 innings pitched, just more than two strikeouts per inning.

 

At the plate, she batted a team-best .514 with 20 runs batted in and three home runs -- also both team highs.

 

She won 10 games in the circle for a team that went 13-2, winning 13 games in a row before falling in the quarter-finals of the Western Massachusetts Division 2 tournament.

 

Vale-Cruz was joined by two Wahconah teammates on the all-County team: second baseman Morgan Marauszwski and first baseman Kaylee O'Bryan.

 

Other players on the all-Berkshire squad included: Mount Greylock pitcher Kami Sweet, shortstop Jordyn Codding and third baseman Emma Newberry; Hoosac Valley pitcher Madi Puppolo, catcher Rylie Bishop and shortstop Rylynn Witek; Pittsfield catcher Mia Alfonso and outfielders Mia Potash and Lexi Sondrini; and Drury outfielder Mackenzie Dobbert.

 

The Berkshire County League coaches also named an all-Northern Division team and an all-Southern Division team.

 

Taconic's Rylee Paronto, Maddie Donovan and Anna Bongini; Wahconah's Julia Trager, Emma Belcher and Kaitlyn Olds; Pittsfield's Lexi Mercier; and Mount Greylock's A.J. Pelkey and Brodi Rosier.

 

Monument Mountain's Elee Hull and Rhianna Louw; Drury's Brooke Bishop and Caroline Cellana; Lee's Katelyn Clark and Kamryn Renata; Lenox's Hailey Ano and Aliza Munch; and Mount Everett's Emma Goewey and Mackenzie Ullrich.

 

Many of those softball all-stars were scheduled to play on Wednesday night at Pittsfield's Doyle Complex in the Berkshire County All-Star Game, but the game was canceled due to Wednesday's storms, and no reschedule date has been determined.