Sports
Mepham Lady Pirates Sail Away from Oceanside in 9-4 Win
Nicole Castaldo, Shannon McLean and Claudia Law give stand out offensive performances.
It was smooth sailing for the (3-6) Mepham Lady Pirates against (1-7) Oceanside, defeating the Oceanside Sailors 9-4. Mepham was the first to score and they never looked back.
From the beginning, it was the Lady Pirates who were relentless, scoring at least once in the first four innings. Mepham freshman Nicole Castaldo led the charge both in the pitching circle and with the bat. Castaldo was two-for-three, two singles and two RBIs.
Other stand out offensive players included Shannon McLean, going two-for-three with two singles and three RBIs and sophomore Claudia Law, who played another solid game offensively going three-for-four with three RBIs.
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"This is what happens when you finally get the bats going," said Mepham coach Mike Muscara. "I've been saying it all season, once you get the bats going you start winning games."
Mepham did just that, with great pitching and played a sound game defensively.
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Starting in the pitching circle was Nicole Castaldo, who has been a bright spot on this competitive season. A good sign for Mepham - along with her solid pitching - is her youth. Castaldo is a freshman was originally brought up from junior varsity to replace an injured position player, but has shown the call up might have been for more than that.
Castaldo pitched a solid game with four strikeouts and a shut out through five innings. Her only blunder was in the sixth inning when she gave up a two-run homerun to Oceanside's first baseman.
"It was my fastball which she hit the home run off of," said freshman pitcher Castaldo. "I mixed my pitches well today, with drop and changeups. I just didn't locate that fastball where I wanted."
"She's on varsity for good," Muscara said. "She's shown this is where she belongs."
The Pirates showed what they were capable of yesterday, despite several injuries that are still plaguing the young squad. Mepham looks to continue the momentum in their next home game against Long Beach (7-2) at 4:30 p.m.
