It was a good start to the week for the Woodstock Academy softball team.
The end could have been better.
The Centaurs downed Bacon Academy and Killingly, but lost to Waterford and East Lyme.
It left the Centaurs with a 7-6 record coming into the week with some tough games ahead. Outside of another game with Bacon Academy (2-7), the Centaurs face the likes of teams with pretty impressive records including Stonington (10-4), Valley Regional (9-4), Montville (10-3), Norwich Free Academy (10-4), Haddam-Killingworth (9-3) and Hale Ray (10-2).
They need to win one to qualify for the state tournament. The Centaurs handled the Bobcats on a chilly, wet afternoon last week, 17-6. The Centaurs scored two runs in the first inning on an RBI from Casidhe Hoyt (2-for-3, 3 runs scored, 3 RBIs) and an error.
After the Bobcats tied the game in the top of the third inning, the Centaurs went ahead by three in the bottom despite getting just one hit.
The Centaurs then prevented the Bobcats from getting on the board in the top of the fifth thanks to two plays at the plate with catcher Julianna Nuttall making the tags twice to prevent runs from scoring.
Shortstop Hannah Burgess made the second when she saw Veronica Krystofik break for the plate for the Bobcats on an infield ground ball and she threw a strike to Nuttall for the out.
“It felt so good to get those two outs and get out of the inning,” Nuttall said.
The offense did the rest, scoring 10 runs in the bottom of the fifth to put the game away. “We hit through, top-to-bottom, the subs came in and hit. What you are seeing now is what we’ve been working on for a few years and where we hoped to be a few years ago. As a group, any kid in that lineup can start to destroy the ball,” said Woodstock Academy coach Jay Gerum. Haley Armstrong added three runs and three RBIs.
In the May 1 win over Killingly, the Centaurs had to fight through eight innings for a 10-8 win. Hoyt broke an 8-8 tie with a double that scored Ciri Miller who had singled and advanced on a wild pitch.
Hoyt came across the plate on a ground out by Hannah Chubbuck for the insurance run.
Burgess led the Centaurs offensively with four hits and four RBIs. Armstrong had a hit and knocked in two. But that’s about where the good news ended for the Centaurs.
Waterford came to town May 4 and handed The Academy an 8-1 loss. The only run for the Centaurs came in the fifth when Nuttall singled and courtesy runner Naomi Rivard scored on an RBI single by Burgess.
The tough times continued May 5 when the Centaurs lost in five, 16-1, to E.Lyme. The only run for the Centaurs came in the bottom of the fourth when Hoyt singled, went to second on a passed ball, advanced on a base hit by Ciri Miller and scored on a Maia Corrado ground out.
In the lower levels, junior varsity pitcher Megan Preston had a career highlight when she tossed a perfect game in an 8-0 win for the Centaurs JV over the Wolverines JV. Preston finished with 15 strikeouts. She struck out the side in each of the first four innings.
Marc Allard
Sports Information Director