Sports
Comeback Kids Do It Again
Tewksbury High softball team pulls out another thriller, 10-9 over Methuen.
It's getting to the point where barely bats an eye when his team falls behind by a few runs.
Clearly, no lead is safe when the Lady Redmen decide to unleash their hitting power, and the Methuen High softball team learned that the hard way Friday night as TMHS came back from multiple-run deficits three different times and eventually pulled out an exciting, 10-9 win over the visiting Rangers.
"Sure, you grind a little when you fall behind, everybody does," DiRocco said. "But the thing is, we can hit. We're young and I know we can hit and I knew we would keep coming back. I really had a lot of faith in them. The younger kids on this team have learned now that we do come back."
Find out what's happening in Tewksburyfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Tewksbury's underclassmen certainly had a hand in the comeback, as pounded out three hits, scored three runs, knocked in three runs and stole three bases in an unprecedented "quadruple-triple" that would have made Rajon Rondo blush.
Threes were wild for as well. Marsh collected three hits including a triple, knocked in three runs and scored twice. And the number three was also lucky for who had three hits including a triple, and scored three runs.
Find out what's happening in Tewksburyfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Greene is the team's lead-off hitter, Hardy bats second, and Marsh hits third, giving Tewksbury a 1-2-3 punch at the top of its batting order that few teams in the Merrimack Valley Conference can match.
"There isn't a better top three in the league, there isn't," DiRocco said. "I knew at the beginning of the year that we were going to be a strong defensive team and I said that if we could hit, we'd give people some trouble. Well those top three hitters are giving people trouble. I don't think there's anybody in the league, other than maybe Chelmsford, who can match those three."
Methuen jumped out to to a 2-0 lead in the top of the first inning, but Tewksbury came back to tie it in the bottom of that inning when Hardy and Marsh both singled, and junior catcher Lauren Texeira cleared the bases with a long, loud double to center field.
Tewksbury went up 4-2 in the second after senior pitcher Kayla Benvenuto doubled and Greene singled. Hardy knocked in a run with a fielder's choice and Marsh knocked in Greene with a single.
Methuen got to Benvenuto in a big way in the fourth, sending nine batters to the plate and parlaying three hits and three walks into a five-run outburst to take a 7-4 lead.
But the Redmen got two back in the bottom of the fourth after Greene tripled, Hardy singled (knocking in Greene) and stole two bases, and Marsh hit behind the runner to drive in Hardy. Tewksbury tied it at 7-7 in the fifth when junior designated hitter Sherri Liggiero led off with the first of her two triples on the night and scored on junior third baseman Katie Doherty's sacrifice fly.
But the resilient Rangers re-took the lead in the sixth when two hits and two walks produced two runs.
Undaunted, Tewksbury's "Top Three" erased the two-run deficit in the bottom of sixth. Greene led off with a single and stole second. Hardy then lasered a single into right field to score Greene, and Marsh tripled in Hardy to tie the score at 9-9.
Liggiero produced the game winner when she tripled to left, pushing Marsh across with her team's 10th run. The game winning hit was Tewksbury's fourth triple, and 15th hit, of the night.
"I can't remember the last time we had that many triples in a game," DiRocco said. "And I can't remember the last time we had this many kids hitting over .400. We really can hit."
Benvenuto worked her way out of a minor jam in the Methuen seventh, with defensive help from Marsh, Doherty and freshman first baseman Shannon McLaughlin, who turned a 6-3-5 double play to erase the Rangers' lead-off runner at third.
Benvenuto allowed 10 hits and walked six, but the Tewksbury ace earned her 13th victory of the season.
Tewksbury now stands at 14-5 overall and 8-5 in the Merrimack Valley Conference with one game to play, Monday night at home against Andover. The Redmen have already qualified for the state tournament.
"This was a big win, because the way it looks now, if we beat Andover Monday night, we may play our first state tournament game at home," DiRocco said.
