Chatham Falls to Lenape, 4-2

After pounding Dover High School, 11-0, on Monday, the Chatham Cougars softball team succumbed to a number of mistakes early on Tuesday afternoon, dropping a tough 4-2 decision to Lenape Valley at Lum Avenue Field in Chatham.

From the start, it looked like starting pitcher Amanda Fazio wasn't her usual self as she struggled to find the strike zone, walking three of the eight batters she faced in the inning.

The sophomore hurler also surrendered two hits in the first frame, putting Chatham in a 2-0 hole. A wild pitch made the score 3-0, putting the pressure on the Cougars' offense.

Fazio would settle down, though, giving up only one more run and striking out 11.

"I was a little disappointed in our performance today. I thought we came out a little flat and weren't ready to play in the first inning. It ended up costing us," Head Coach Alexis Davies said after the game. "I think sometimes Amanda warms up and it's too long of a period between her warm-up and when the game starts. She didn't seem to think that was the problem today."

Offensively, the Cougars weren't present, as they were only able to produce four hits on the day.

One of those hits—a two-run home run by senior catcher Alex St. Romain in the fifth inning—got Chatham within two runs, but wouldn't be enough as only one Cougar would reach first base the rest of the game.

"We didn't hit today and we didn't give ourselves a chance to get back into the game," Davies said.

Lenape pitcher Caitlin Zaleski looked very strong, recording 12 strikeouts—three of which came in the bottom of the seventh to end the game.

After the game, a visibly frustrated Davies laid into her team verbally in the middle of the diamond.

"I never like to be out hustled and I think we were out hustled today. I don't mind losing, but I don't like feeling like they wanted it more than we did," she said. "We're awfully young and we're going to have some growing pains. We definitely need a better effort than we gave today.

"We had games like this last year, so this is not an unfamiliar site. It's just how we bounce back tomorrow. Hopefully tomorrow we play a stronger game."

Chatham (2-1) will look to rebound at Mendham on Wednesday.