Saints finish season on high note
PAWTUCKET — The St. Raphael softball team battled back from a three-run deficit before visiting Burrillville erased a two-run deficit to send Wednesday’s Division II Valley clash to extra innings.
The Saints eventually ended Burrillville’s upset bid when freshman pitcher Jillian Serra doubled and pinch runner Myha Wrigley came around to score on a Sydney Charette fielder’s choice to third base in the home side’s 9-8 eight-inning victory at Hank Soar.
“We started off slow, but we kept at it and kept plugging away,” St. Raphael coach Ron LaBree said. “Finally, in the fifth inning, we put it all together and got back into the game before winning it in the eighth.”
St. Raphael (12-5 Division II) saw Charette get the victory after relieving Serra in the fifth inning. Offensively, Ashley Bullen sparked the six-run uprising in the fifth with a two-run double to score Kaylee Contreras and Charette. Bullen finished the day with three hits and two RBIs. Tori Jacques had two hits and an RBI, while Taylor Troiano and Serra each had two hits.
Burrillville (5-11 Division II) was led by outstanding freshman leadoff hitter Jade Guertin, who was 3-for-5 with a double and three runs scored. Alyssa Simpson was 3-for-5 with a triple and a run scored and pitcher Rebecca Arndt was 3-for-4 with a run scored.
The Broncos finish the regular season today at Portsmouth.
“They’re a well coached, disciplined team,” LaBree said of coach Bill Lacey’s Broncos. “They throw the shift at you and we weren’t ready for it because you don’t see that in high school. They played every inning to the fullest, even when we took the lead in the fifth.”
Burrillville 101 212 10 – 8 13 4
St. Raphael 100 160 01 – 9 15 3 Rebecca Arndt and Maddie McCutcheon; Jillian Serra, Sydnee Charette (5) and Saylor Costa