BIDDEFORD — The Biddeford softball team threatened every inning, but broke through in only one of them.
That was all the Tigers needed Thursday afternoon.
Charlotte Donovan pitched around a rocky fourth inning, and a four-run third held up to lift Biddeford over Marshwood/Berwick 4-3 for the Tigers’ seventh straight victory.
“We’ve been getting the big hits. Today we left men on base, we just didn’t get that big hit, and you’re going to have games like that,” Biddeford Coach Mike Fecteau said. “You’ve got to win it other ways. We won on pitching and defense.”
Marshwood almost rode a similar formula to victory. Freshman starter Emily Hester navigated around base runners and terrific outfield defense and stopped one Biddeford rally after another, but the Hawks found themselves needing one more run, and perhaps even just one more hit.
“After a long week, I thought the girls played very well,” said Coach Pete Eastman, whose team was coming off back-to-back losses to powers Scarborough and Windham, but is still 5-4 after going 4-11 last season. “I thought the girls fought hard, we missed a few opportunities. … I think if we get another run or two, it changes the momentum of that game.”
Biddeford put runners on base in every inning, but came away empty in each inning – except for the third. Lily LeSieur led off with a walk and Kayla Magnant reached when her bunt was mishandled for an error, putting runners on first and second with no outs. Donovan flew out to center, and Hawks center fielder Bella Pomarico made another terrific catch on Laura Perreault’s deep fly ball, tumbling over the fencing while LeSieur tagged up and scored.
The catch looked like it might cut short the rally, but the hits kept coming. Baylor Wilkinson’s double scored Magnant, Hannah Lappin laced a single that drove in Wilkinson, and Lappin scored on another hard-hit single from Mariah Villandry.
Lappin (2 for 3) said scoring that first run started a frenzy.
“There’s just a train after that, everybody keeps getting hits,” she said. “When Baylor gets a hit and Laura in front of her and Charlotte, I feel like I’m going to get a hit. … It’s just carrying on, you don’t have to stress.”
The Hawks came back in their next at-bat, as Piper Catanese’s bases-loaded single to right scored Pomarico, Hester, and following an error, Lindsay Bennett. That, however, was the extent of the rally as Donovan stranded two runners and then retired nine of the final 10 batters.
Marshwood got Jaydn Eastman to third in the fifth, but Donovan left her there. She finished with 10 strikeouts and two hits allowed, none of which were surrendered outside of the fourth.
“After that inning, where there were a couple of little hiccups, all you can do is move past it, pick your head up and bring your team together,” Donovan said. “It’s past, so move on and try to make it so it doesn’t happen again.”
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