Amato latest Cheshire pitching standout

The Cheshire softball team — ranked No. 7 in the latest GameTimeCT/Register Top 10 Poll — has won its share of games in blowout fashion, but the Rams have more than held their own in close games.

A 6-1 record in games decided by two runs or less has Cheshire atop the SCC standings and primed for another deep run in the postseason.

Having a strong ace in the circle helps turn the tide in those high-pressure situations.

Senior Natalie Amato had to wait her turn behind a school legend in Abby Abramson before thriving this spring. Amato had limited varsity experience in the circle before starting almost every game for the 16-1 Rams.

“We had some returning kids with experience, but we had a big unanswered question with Abby leaving,” said Cheshire coach Kristine Drust, who has a 108-13 record in her five seasons with the team. “(Amato), who didn’t have much experience prior to this year really stepped up; she got stronger over the offseason and really stepped up to the plate.”

Drust conceded she was planning on using a committee to make up for Abramson’s departure, but the strong Amato made the position her own with one impressive performance after another.

She also hasn’t blinked in close games. Amato — who will play at the University of St. Joseph — has mastered the mental part of the position from studying the ones that came before her, Drust added.

The Rams have collected seven shutouts this spring.

The race for the NVL title took a turn when now No. 2 Seymour was knocked off by St. Paul in a 4-3 thriller last Monday. Perhaps overlooked at 16-1, the Falcons have won 16 in a row since a season-opening loss to Watertown and earned the No. 10 spot in the latest poll.

“Generally, any time we have a loss like that in a close game it kind of opens our eyes,” said Seymour pitcher Molly Adamo after pitching a shutout against Oxford Friday. “We’re not invincible and we have to work hard every day to continue to do what we’re supposed to as Seymour softball.”

St. Paul has a trio of underclassmen hitting above .550 in sophomore Katrina Roy and juniors Jessica Persechino and Abby Poirot. Poirot is also 11-1 in the circle with 130 strikeouts in 77 innings.

Three-time defending Class S champion Holy Cross remains right in contention at 13-5, and Wolcott, Oxford, Sacred Heart and Watertown each boast strong records.

Another week saw a handful of milestones across the state as seniors take their last swings at the plate down the stretch. Amity’s Dani Nordyk and Lindsey O’Bright of St. Paul collected their 100th career hits while NFA’s Shea Gendron hit a home run to break the school’s hit record a 129.

Seymour’s Becca Johnson continued her torrid season by earning her 200th hit; Johnson is hitting .746 with 44 hits in 17 games.