CORINTH, Maine — Central sophomore right fielder Logan Reardon stepped to the plate in the bottom of the seventh in a tie game against Mattanawcook Academy looking for a pitch that could win the game for the Red Devils.
She found her pitch on a 1-1 count and sent it through the left side of the infield to score shortstop Emma Campbell and lift Central to a 5-4 high school softball victory on Wednesday afternoon.
“I was just looking for something that I liked,” Reardon said. “It’s all about discipline. You need to know that you don’t need a home run, you just need a base hit in that situation.”
Central (5-4) got things started in the bottom of the seventh after Campbell laid down a bunt single. A sacrifice bunt from third baseman Tasha Miller and a groundout from first baseman Aly Crocker moved Campbell to third with two outs to set the stage for Reardon.
“It was a total team effort, and they did a great job,” said Central head coach Durice Washburn. “We were hoping that Emma could get on base from the bunt, and when Tasha moved her to second, we were hoping one of our 3-4 hitters would get a hit, and it worked out. It doesn’t always work out that way, but when it does, it’s nice.”
The Red Devils received a great effort from senior starting pitcher Konnar Kirlin as she picked up her first win of the season, pitching all seven innings while giving up four runs on eight hits and striking out two.
“We focused from beginning to the end and that’s something we’ve really been harping on, to play a complete game and not let down.” Washburn said.
Mattanawcook Academy of Lincoln (6-1) took the early lead in the second after junior second baseman Cheyanne Libby singled to score freshman Kimberlee Voisine. However, Libby was thrown out at second trying to extend her single.
The Red Devils responded in the bottom of the inning, scoring two runs on a double by second baseman Sidney Potvin, who also hit a single and reached base three times. They added a run in the third on Aly Crocker’s RBI grounder.
“Defensively, we had some miscues, too,” said MA coach Dean Libbey. “We’ll get back to the drawing board and work harder.”
The Lynx got a solid effort from senior Courtney McIntyre, who allowed five runs on nine hits while striking out 10 and suffered her first loss of the season.
“Today [McIntyre] got behind a little and put some pressure on herself.” Libbey said.
Mattanawcook was helped offensively by Voisine, whose double in the fifth inning scored junior Camryn Lyons to tie the game at 4-4. The Lynx didn’t score after that.
“We are used to hitting the ball really well,” Libbey said. “What we hit for power was hit right at the fielders.”
Mattanawcook looks to get back on track on Saturday when it heads to Lee Academy, while Central looks to keep its momentum as it hosts Dexter on Friday.