Amity Softball Tramples West Haven

Amity’s junior first baseman Dana Blydenberg had a weekend many players just dream about. In Friday’s Southern Connecticut Conference inter-divisional victory over Jonathan Law Blydenberg slugged three doubles and drove in four runs. On Saturday she slugged two home runs and a double, scored four runs, and drove in five as the Lady Spartans trampled West Haven 16-0 at the Westies’ Biondi Field. Thanks to the Mercy Rule, the lop-sided contest was halted after five innings. It was the Blue Devils’ first loss after opening their season with a pair of victories.

“I’m just getting into it,” Blydenberg said. “I was able to execute when the pitches were there. I went for it and hit the ball hard.”

She credited off-season weight training, martial arts, running, and agility drills with being the keys to her increased batting power.

She added, “Last year I had no power. This year, I’ve been able to get onto the ball more, but this new power doesn’t really surprise me. I’m going up there and getting the job done. I worked hard during the off-season and during the summer, I played a lot of softball for the Shockers and Breakers.”

Clearly delighted by Blydenberg’s early season offensive explosion, Coach Bob Purcell said, “This is the second day in a row that Dana has ripped the cover off the ball. She has developed confidence in her own abilities and is swinging really well. I honestly expected to see her hitting the ball with power. There is a reason I bat her fourth, but I never expected anything like this. Dana and our other girls are a lot stronger this year.”

The visitors wasted no time in jumping on West Haven pitcher Joanna Fekieta. C. J. Semons led off the top of the first inning with a walk. By the time it ended nine batters later, Amity had banged out five hits and poured six runs across home plate. Jenn Hoffer drove Simones home by ripping a triple into deep right center field. After Hoffer scored on a Blydenberg fielder’s choice, Jacqui Ferraiolo added a run-scoring, two-bagger into right field.  Winning pitcher Carina Zdrowski added an RBI single to right field and Heather Watt’s triple in the same direction made it 5-0. Zdrowski added another run when she raced home on a throwing error by Blue devil Right fielder Candice Lawrence.

According to Purcell, “We knew their pitcher liked to keep the ball outside to right handed batters, so I told my girls to creep closer to the plate and get good hacks. They didn’t just hit the ball today. Time after time, they hit it hard and to the opposite field.”

With two outs in the top of the second inning, Blydenberg blasted the ball over the fence in dead center field to give the Lady Spartans a 7-0 lead. In the top of the third inning, Heather Ferrante and Zdrowski hit back-to-back doubles. Shortly there after, Alyssa Mirmina singled home two more runs. Blydenberg followed by slamming a three-run round tripper off the foul pole in left field that made it 15-0. She closed out the Lady Spartans’ offensive tsunami with a fifth inning double, an error by third baseman Amber Bonewicz, and Kristi Reynolds’ fielder’s choice.

Purcell added, “We got off to a slow start, losing our first game to Sacred Heart, but we’ve really stepped things up and played really well in our last two games. We have a small roster but have rallied around each other. I’m starting three freshmen (Watt, Reynolds, and Ferrante) and our pitcher (Zdrowski) is only a sophomore and has pitched really well in our last two games. I hope what we did against Law, and now West Haven, increases our confidence, carries over and things start to roll for us.”

The Westies managed only four hits off Zdrowski and Blydenberg (who hurled the fifth inning). Zdrowski also walked two and struck out four West Haven batters.     

Zdrowski walked Shannon Connor in the bottom of the first inning and Camdyn Morgillo reached base on a fielding error by Watt.

With two outs and two runners on base, Zdrowski fired an inning-ending third strike past Katy Hoyt. Connor led off the bottom of the third with a blast to the base of the center field fence. Instead of settling for a double, she tried to stretch it into a triple but was gunned down on a perfect throw from center fielder Mirmina to third baseman Hoffer.

Hoyt led off the home half of the fourth inning with a double and advanced to third base on a single by Sammy Johnson. With runners on the corners with only one out, Zdrowski retired Bonewicz on a hopper to third base and then left both runners stranded in scoring position when she struck out Lawrence.

In addition to Blydenberg’s offensive fireworks, the winners’ 14-hit attack also included two hits and two RBIs by Zdrowski. Hoyt added a triple and a single. She also scored three runs.