Lady Rams softball team loses 3 of 4 games including an ultra wild deuce to Sleepy Hollow
March 28, 2024 at 1:03 a.m.
It was one of those good news, bad news yet predictably unpredictable starts to the Lady Rams softball team's spring season.
Port Chester got no-hit and shut out 12-0 by a very good White Plains team during their home opener last Wednesday (3/20) in weather so raw it seemed like winter with the rain and cold putting a damper on a game that had the inexperienced local pitchers slipping and sliding on the mound while getting their feet and arms wet in their debut.
They bounced back to beat a very beatable East Ramapo squad 19-7 on a sunny Monday (3/25) that lived up to its spring billing when it came to appearances except for the fact that it was played in brisk late Fall-like temperatures. That contest was followed by a twin loss Tuesday (3/26) in which Sleepy Hollow scored 29 runs in the first game and 28 in the second to run away with both contests.
Predictably unpredictable
If that scoring disparity seemed as unpredictable as the crazy March weather, it was nonetheless more or less predictable.
Because the Lady Rams will go only as far as their pitching arms will take them.
To start with the good news, the arms were there along with the legs and bats against East Ramapo.
Fiona Lovallo stepped up big time on the mound, facing 25 batters while giving up just four hits while mixing up two strikeouts with six walks.
"She did her job and pitched strikes which allowed our defense to make the plays in the field," veteran head coach Jeanine Maiolini said after the game. "We only had one error and that's the difference between W's and L's."
Hit and run improvement
Another noticeable difference is the way a team swings the bat and runs the bases, and the Lady Rams did both.
Tamara Correia, for example, batted cleanup, went three for four with three runs batted in, scored four times, had two doubles and a clutch base bit at just the right time when the game was still in doubt.
Lead-off hitter Karah Provenzano did just what she was supposed to do because she kept getting on base so her teammates could drive her in. Provenzano had a base hit, walked four times, stole two bases, had two RBIs, scored four runs and scored twice from third base on passed balls.
Tabby Sanchez had two base hits with other Lady Rams joining the hit parade including Heidi Gonzalez, Melina Morban, Yvonne Santiago, Fatima Coyt and Lovallo.
"It was an all-around great effort from the team," said Maiolini.
The arms show promise
But it was a different story against White Plains for anyone who knows the score—and that knowledge goes beyond the game score.
"White Plains is a powerhouse team with strong softball players, some of whom are already committed to D1 colleges," Maiolini pointed out, stating facts, not making excuses. "White Plains is made up of year-round softball players which makes it really hard for us to compete against them because our girls only play two to three months a year. They had very strong pitching and we could not catch up to her speed."
Port Chester pitcher Fiona Lovallo starts her pitching windup during the Lady Rams’ 19-7 victory over East Ramapo at home on Monday, Mar. 25. She faced 25 batters while giving up just four hits.By Chloe Trieff
Sofia Greco was the only Port Chester runner to reach base and she got there on two bases on balls.
But while both teams played in the same freezing cold and rainy conditions, White Plains proved to be the better mudders and opened the season with the better resume.
"We opened the season playing the best team in our league, a team right up there in the Section 1 rankings, and the weather didn't help," Maiolini said. "I'm proud of my girls for not giving up and doing their best. That is all I can ask from them. We will get our bats going, we will make those important plays and we will improve as the season goes on."
And that includes the pitching arms.
Potential Big 3
Because Maiolini noticed that the Lady Rams’ pitching showed improvement as the game progressed against White Plains.
"Melina (Morban) was starting to find her groove on the mound but had to leave the game early," Maiolini said. "Kathleen (Scarola) stepped in and was throwing really well but unfortunately took a wrong step on the mound and sprained her ankle. Thankfully Fiona (Lovallo) was able to step in and get the job done for us and close out the game."
So that's how the opening lines of the Lady Rams softball team's spring season story begins—as the arms of Morban, Scarola and Lovallo go, so goes Port Chester because Correia, Provenzano, Garcia and Sanchez have the bats, the team has the heart and Maiolini puts the fun in the fundamentals as one of the best coaches in the league.
When darkness set in
That is why what happened in the two games the Lady Rams played against Sleepy Hollow didn't throw Maiolini off stride. The first game started on Friday (3/22) but was called because of darkness and had to be completed on Tuesday (3/26). That didn't end well because P.C. lost the replay by a 29-12 score to Sleepy Hollow at home.
The Lady Rams’ pitching seemed to collectively lose the plate with all three pitchers giving up a combined 23 walks, hitting two batters and giving up 10 hits. "Our defense was there, but we need to do a better job throwing strikes," Maiolini said after that game.
Correia swung the Rams’ big bat going three for four with a single and two doubles. Heidi Gonzalez went two for four with a single and a double. And the Lady Rams actually outhit Sleepy Hollow. But, as Maiolini put it, "It's hard to win a game when you put 23 batters on the bases for free" when your pitchers take a walk on the wild side and lose sight of the plate while giving up so many walks.
Game two played the same day also resulted in a loss with Sleepy Hollow winning 28-7. But this time the pitching was better with Lovallo starting off pitching great, according to Maiolini, but the defense wasn't there. Lovallo (with a single and double) and Correia (with a single and triple) paced the hitting attack and sophomore Yvonne Santiago showed she could "pitch, catch, play anywhere in the field and has some power behind her bat," Maiolini said, sounding pleased by Santiago's all-around play.
But the team remains a work in progress.
Bottom line: the next chapters will be written in the next few days during games against always strong Mamaroneck Tuesday (4/2) away and New Rochelle Thursday (4/4) at home, both at 4:30 p.m., with traditional crosstown rival Blind Brook on tap Saturday (4/6) away at 11 a.m. By then Maiolini will have a better idea of whether this will be a good news or bad news kind of spring season or some combination of both.
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