The 12U Summit softball team lost, 17-9, Monday night at the hands of Roselle Park at Ashland Field. The final score does not tell the whole story, though, as Summit led by three runs after the first inning, led going into the fourth inning, and trailed by only three after five innings.
Roselle Park began the game by scoring two runs, but Summit did well to leave them with the bases loaded. The inning was aided with a nice defensive play as shortstop Catherine Ciaravalli threw a runner out at home and catcher Angela Scott tagged her out.
The Summit offense got off to a hot start in the bottom of the first, reeling off five runs. Alexa Carlson led off with a walk, and back-to-back singles by Hannah Calabrese and Nicole Trone loaded the bases with no outs. After Carlson stole home, Kayla Hoesly singled to tie the game at two. Angela Scott then singled to keep the no-out rally going, making it 3-2 Summit. A pair of sacrifice flies by Tanai Hines and Jewelz Lopez helped Summit take a 5-2 lead at the end of the first.
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The top of the second inning looked good for Roselle Park as they loaded the bases with no outs. However, the inning turned when Ciaravalli made a great running catch and doubled off the runner at first base. Roselle Park managed to get two runs across, but the inning ended when third basemen Trone made a catch on a line drive.
"There were some fantastic plays in the field," Head coach John Calabrese said. "The fielding was great and the girls threw pitches for strikes."
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The next inning-and-a-half went mostly uneventful, with the two teams combining for two hits as only 11 batters came to bat in three half-innings. Trone made another nice line drive catch in the top of the third for Summit, preserving the 5-4 lead.
Roselle Park plated two runs in the top of the fourth, gaining a 6-5 lead that they wouldn't relinquish. Summit went down 1-2-3 in the bottom of the fourth, and trailed by one run with three innings to play.
"When we went down, we started to get a little bit anxious," John Calabrese said. "Part of softball is patience, and patience wins a game like this one."
Roselle Park broke the game open in the top of the fifth, adding four runs and building a five run lead in the process. However, Summit didn't go away, scoring two runs in the bottom of the fifth to cut the lead to 10-7. With one out, Grace Gallupo and Carlson drew back-to-back walks, and were driven in by Hannah Calabrese on a two-run single.
The away team managed another run in the top of the sixth, taking an 11-7 lead. After two quick outs in the bottom of the inning, a Hines single and Lopez walk set up two runners on for Summit. Catie Flogel connected very well with the ball, but a great catch in the field ended the Summit inning. Roselle Park added six runs in the final inning, building a seemingly insurmountable 10-run lead. Summit was able to score two runs, which included a hit, a walk, a hit-by-pitch, and a safe runner at first on a dropped third strike.
"I'm proud of the girls, because when they got behind they didn't let up," John Calabrese said. "They kept their heads in the game and never stopped being dedicated. They played hard."
Hannah Calabrese pitched six innings for Summit and went 3-3 at the plate with a walk and two runs batted in. Hoesly went 2-4 with two runs batted in, and also pitched one inning.
Summit will play tonight at 6 p.m. at Summit High School.
