Published April 27, 2012 in the Rutland Herald
Springfield nips Otter Valley in the eighth
By Tom Haley
STAFF WRITER
BRANDON — Springfield pitcher Sara Locke won her extra-inning duel with Otter Valley’s hard-throwing Taylor Aines, but it was her play in the eighth inning that extinguished a potential game-winning rally, preserving the Cosmos’ 5-4 victory.
The Otters trailed 5-3 entering the bottom of the eighth. Marissa D’Avignon drew a one-out walk and scored on Aines’ double into the left-center gap. Aines took third on the throw home to get D’Avignon. Brittany Bushey got down a bunt and Locke fielded it. She sold the fake of a throw to first, whirled and had Aines caught between third and home. She ran straight at her and tagged her for the second out. She then induced an infield popup to end the game.
Springfield coach Andy Bladyka visited the mound before Bushey stepped into the box and they discussed that same play for defending the bunt.
“I ran right at her because that’s what we work on in practice,” Locke said.
“A lot of teams work on that play, but working on is one thing. You have to execute it,” Bladyka said.
The Cosmos staked Locke to a 2-0 lead with a run in the first and another in the second. Jill Rushton roped a single to right and Jenna Paul and KK Haskell worked Aines for consecutive walks. Freshman Chelsea McAllister singled to left, scoring Rushton with the first run.
The second run came when Emma Esty walked, was sacrificed to second by Julia Stein, and came around to score on an error.
Locke breezed through the first two innings, but the Otters scored twice in the third to tie it. It began when Kelsey Poljacik was hit by a pitch and came around to score on an error. Cortney Poljacik’s single plated Bushey, who had singled.
The Otters took a 3-2 lead in the fourth when Katie Perry singled to right and moved up on Mallory Ketcham’s bunt. Kelsey Poljacik then ripped an RBI single to right.
The Cosmos tied it with a run in the seventh. Rushton poled a booming double to right and scored on Paul’s hard single.
Paul had two of the biggest hits in the game, the RBI single to tie it in the seventh and another RBI single to left in the eighth.
“Mike Langdon (the hitting coach) has worked a lot to tweak her swing,” Bladyka said. “Jenna has really stepped up this year. Last year she was hitting low in the order and this year we have her up at No. 3.”
The Cosmos scored twice in the top of the eighth to go ahead 5-3. Aines struggled with her control, walking three in the inning, and she was also hurt by two errors. Kristin Cook scored on the error after drawing a walk. Locke reached on an error and raced home on Paul’s base hit.
That set the stage for the Otters’ threat in the bottom of the eighth and Locke’s well-executed play that helped to snuff it out.
The Cosmos are 5-2 and hoping to defend their Division II state crown.
“This gets everyone pumped up,” Locke said of the win.
The Otters had an even bigger threat in the fifth when they had two runners aboard with no outs, but Springfield killed that rally with some spectacular infield defense. Bushey led off the inning with a walk and Jerome reached on an infield single. Cortney Poljacik made a strong bid for hit by stinging the ball between first and second. But second baseman Rushton went sprawling, speared the ball and righted herself to throw Poljacik out at first. Then Chelsea Robbins scorched a line drive that was ticketed for the gap and extra bases. Shortstop Kristin Cook went high in the air, snared the ball at the height of her jump and threw the ball to second, getting pinch runner Chalyn Costa trying to get back to the bag for the double play.
The Cosmos got only five hits off Aines and had none from the second through sixth innings. But she walked nine and struck out six.
Locke surrendered seven hits, struck out seven and walked six.
The Otters fall to 3-2.
Aines has impressive velocity and Locke felt it helped that the Cosmos had already faced hard throwers like Leland & Gray’s Nicole Sherman and Brattleboro’s Kayla Wood. They also put the pitching machine at the edge of the pitching circle nearest the plate and crank up the velocity.
“I think it helps a lot hitting against the speed of the machine,” Locke said. “It helps our bats come alive.”
“Taylor threw well, but we’re up and down,” OV coach Pattie Candon said.
She will be looking for her Otters to bounce back on Saturday at Woodstock.
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