Summit Impact Hold Off Madison-Whitehorn in Rain

The Summit Impact withstood a Madison-Whitehorn rally Tuesday and held on for the victory, 13-11 in 5th and 6th grade girl's softball.

The Impact led 13-3 entering the 5th and final inning, but Whitehorn scored eight runs before leaving the bases loaded on a pop-out to end the game at Ashland Field in Summit.

"There were some control issues at the end, but we got the job done," head coach John Calabrese said.

Kayla Hoesly and Hannah Calabrese of the Impact combined for five innings pitched, surrendering three hits. The Impact played with only eight players in the field, making the three-hitter more impressive. All eight players contributed on offense as well, with each one tallying at least one hit.

"The bats really came alive tonight," Calabrese said. "We were aggressive at the plate and running the bases."

Jackie Shepard led the offense with five runs batted in, adding three hits as well. Hoesly reached base in all four of her plate appearances, going 3-3 with a double, a walk, and one run batted in. Claire Schaeffer had three hits and two runs batted in. Sarah Williams played well offensively as well, reaching base three times.

Whitehorn led off the top of the first with two quick base runners. However, a nice throw by Impact catcher Alex McDonald got the potential base stealer out at third.

"The defense really shut things down," John Calabrese said. "We made some great plays."

The inning was then halted for lightning, but play resumed after a short delay.

The Impact came up in the bottom of the first inning and cashed in five runs on five hits. The rulebook states the inning instantly ends after five runs are scored (until the final inning, when unlimited runs can be scored).

Whitehorn scored one run in the top of the second, and the Impact answered with three of their own to take an 8-1 lead. Hannah Calabrese, Claire Fitzpatrick, and Hoesly led off the inning with three straight hits, and all ended up coming around to score runs before the inning was over.

Following another inning of Whitehorn scoring one run, the Impact plated four more runs. It could have been more, but Whitehorn turned a nice double play to end the inning. Shepard had a two-run single with the bases loaded, scoring half of the teams runs in the third.

The fourth featured less action, with each team tacking on one run, giving the Impact a seemingly comfortable 10-run lead heading into the final inning of action.

Arguably the biggest play of the game came in the top of the 5^th. With one Whitehorn run already home and the bases loaded with one out, second baseman Emmy Trone made a great catch on a pop-up, putting Whitehorn in a tough spot with only one more out to spare.

"Emmy Trone had a good catch," John Calabrese said. "And Shepard and Hoesly played really well at first base.

Impact pitcher Hoesly recorded the last out on a pop-up, ending the Whitehorn threat.

The Impact will continue their season Thursday, June 3, against the Madison Playwrights at Myrtle Field in Summit at 6 p.m.