Garafolo Holding Corp wins Lewisboro Women’s Softball League

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Even though the ball isn’t moving a hundred miles an hour in a slow pitch softball game, the pitcher is still the most important player on the field. So with their pitcher on vacation for the championship game on Monday August 3, GHC didn’t even have a backup to rely on. “I’ve never pitched in a game before,” said Meghan O’Leary, but the lack of experience didn’t show.

“I was just trying to get it over the plate for the other team to hit. They did, and my team backed me up,” said the winning pitcher after the 13-5 trophy raising victory.

The novice really began the game on her toes too. After recording an opening strikeout, O’Leary made a kick save on Wendy O’Connell’s comebacker. She then picked up the ball for the second out at first, and Danielle Auteri snared Laura Statuti’s low liner into the hole for the third out.

Batter up, GHC got started. Causa beat out a routine grounder, and O’Leary’s loft into sunny left field dropped. Two on with none out, Jess Van Galen’s rope to left drove in the first run, but Auteri got a taste of her own medicine. Her line drive to short was eaten up, and the home team went quietly with a fly out to center and a ground out.

Onto the second, CMDR looked like they would break through. Terri Nadeau’s fly to left resulted in an error and walks to Doreen Schmidt and Maria Basset loaded the bases with two outs. Not good enough, Annie Conway flew out to center, and all three runners were stranded. 

The one run game didn’t remain for long, and Alyssa Calo stayed within her means to get things started. “I’m not a power hitter so anything I hit, I rely on my speed,” she said after beating out a grounder to deep short.

The singles weren’t done coming either. Trish Ward, Sara Ackerman, Angie Loffa, Angela Martin and Causa all followed suit and the left fielder was not surprised. “All we want is little hits,” said Causa, and a 4-0 lead was the result.

Then O’Leary’s drive to left registered another error, and while a 6-5-4 double play wasn’t ideal, the fielder’s choice yielded a 5-0 lead. One more to go, Auteri lined another single, and GHC was finally done with a six run lead.

CMDR kept their heads up nonetheless, and they did so by initially being patient. Three walks loaded the bases with one out, and the jam left Theresa Pepe the opportunity to get the bat off her shoulder. 

She smoked a single up the middle, and her team was on the board. Another walk made it 6-2 so O’Leary followed with a reset. “I really just had to bear down and focus,” she said, and the strikes coming put the defense back in play.

First, Ackerman made a shoestring catch on Schmidt’s sinking liner, and after CMDR pushed two more runs across, more defense put the fire out. What looked to be a line single to left had Causa alertly throwing to second for the force, and Taylor Michaels got the scoop to the appreciation of her pitcher. “That was amazing,” said O’Leary, “I couldn’t have asked for better.”

A lead off triple by the second baseman was pretty close, though. A falling bloop by Elyssa Michaels and a pair line drives by Trish Ward and Ackerman added a run and put two more runners on.

Next, Loffa’s laser didn’t get through at short, so Angela Martin made no apologies for her weak infield hit at the pitcher. Not done, Ropes by Causa and O’Leary made it 11-4, and the lack of let down was no surprise to Elyssa Michaels. “There’s quite a few former college players on this team who are very talented,” said the team manager.

Mostly good to cruise home, the final out awaited. “I thought, hit it to me, because I got this,” said Ackerman.

Her squeeze did the deed, and let Auteri tie the bow. “It’s amazing, she concluded.

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