Marauders Softball Win Second Game in Two Days

Softball is a game dominated by pitching and defense, especially at the high school level. In the case of junior Laura Tavalone, one might add clutch hitting to that list.

The short, sweet hitting junior had not one, but two clutch hits in Dedham’s 4-3 nine-inning win over MIAA Division 2 non-league foe Medway Thursday afternoon. 

“For a little tyke, she comes up with big hits,” said Dedham coach Erika Eisenhut.

Tavalone’s first clutch hit came with two outs in the bottom of the seventh, when she hit a shot in the gap to bring home Dedham shortstop Emily Mosca with the tying run.

Tavalone was thrown out trying to stretch a double into a triple, frustrating the third baseman despite tying up the game with two outs.

“I needed to redeem myself there,” said Tavalone

She certainly did, by knocking in the winning run in the bottom of the ninth after the Marauders successfully bunted the bases loaded.

“We basically didn’t give up, [we] made sure to keep hitting. We were able to get people on base and bring them around,” said Tavalone.

Dedham’s pitching was also superb as junior Brooke Sheehan scattered five hits over nine innings to hold an offensive-minded Medway team to three runs.

Medway took the lead in the fifth, after trailing 2-1, when Sarah Kelly hit a RBI single in the fourth by utilizing a double-steal to manufacture a run.

The play was mishandled by the Dedham defense and almost wasted a great performance by Sheehan.

“It’s good to expose some off our weaknesses early on,” said Eisenhut.

Trailing by a run in the seventh, Mosca lead off with a single and advanced to second on a ground out to the pitcher, setting up the stage for Tavalone and her heroics.

“We chipped away and we manufactured some runs,” added Eisenhut. “On a good note, we stuck with it, and had big plays when it counted.”

Eisenhut noticed Medway struggled defending Dedham’s bunts all day, and had her player’s bunt to put pressure on the Medway defense.

In the ninth, it was apparent what the strategy was for the Marauders as they bunted their way to load the bases with no outs, again setting the stage for Tavalone to answer the bell a second time.

“She comes up big in situations like that, and I will take that any day,” concluded Eisenhut.

After defeating Canton 9-0 on Wednesday, the Marauders already qualify for MIAA Division 2 tournament play.

Baseball

Dedham 9, West Roxbury 0

Dedham senior captain Brian Coakley pitched a complete game two-hitter with one strikeout. Matt Baron led the 1-1 Marauders offensively, going 3-for-4 at the plate with four RBI, a single, double and a triple.