B/NS advances to final
BURRILLVILLE — In the first inning of Sunday afternoon’s Division III winners’ bracket final, undefeated Burrillville/North Smithfield co-op had an opportunity to move a runner into scoring position with less than two outs and junior Abby Fortin laid down a perfect sacrifice bunt to help the Broncos take the lead.
Visiting West Warwick had the same opportunity in the seventh when the first two batters of the inning reached base. Unlike Burrillville, the Wizards twice failed to move the game-tying run into scoring position and sophomore hurler Julianna Colbert extricated herself from the tough situation to lead the No. 1 Broncos to a 2-0 victory at Hauser Field.
“I don’t even know how to describe this game, it was just crazy,” Colbert, a Burrillville sophomore, said. “Facing a really good pitcher [West Warwick’s Mackenzie Briggs] who is one of the best in the division, I had to mentally prepare myself for that and make sure I pitch good. I knew she was going to come with it, too. I felt like I pitched good.”
“The very little practice time that we have, we talk about doing the little things right,” B/NS coach Bill Lacey said. “In the first playoff game against Tiverton we had to execute two suicide squeezes to win. Against Ponaganset, we were great with our cuts and our relays to keep singles from being doubles. The little things we work on every day show up in these games.”
West Warwick (14-2 Division III) now needs to win one game at Amby Smith Field on either Tuesday or Wednesday to get a shot at the Broncos in the Division III title game – or games – at Rhode Island College. The Wizards stranded a pair of runners in the third, sixth and seventh innings, as Kelsey Sullivan and Rachel Gosselin each reach base safely twice.
“Early on [Colbert] dominated us, but we started to get runners on base as the game went along, but we couldn’t get bunts down,” veteran West Warwick coach Brian Palazzo said. “You have to figure you’re only going to get so many hits a game against a good pitcher, so you have to move those runners around when you can.
“The ultimate plan is to get another shot at them. I don’t know who we’re going to play next – either Ponaganset or Mt. Hope – but hopefully we can get another shot. We have the best shot of doing anything against them.”
Burrillville/North Smithfield (160) now has three days of rest before trekking down to Providence looking to win the Broncos’ first fast-pitch title since the program switched from slow pitch in 2003. North Smithfield has also never won a softball title, appearing only in the 2005 Division II final.
The Broncos, who overcame local rival Ponaganset, 6-2, in the semifinals, grabbed the only run they would need in the opening inning against the stingy Briggs. Northmen senior Tessa LaBarre worked a lead-off walk and moved all the way to third on Fortin’s sacrifice bunt. Northmen sophomore Sam Ledger grounded out to short to plate LaBarre.
After Colbert worked out of a jam in the third inning, the Broncos doubled their lead in the fourth when Burrillville senior Jade Guertin cranked 0-2 pitch over the fence for her first career home run.
“I realized against her I had to step really early and I needed to choke up a little more,” Guertin said. “Both of my at-bats against her today I went down two strikes and the one time I hit a home run. I just had to time her up. I don’t know how to explain it because this is my first high school home run. That felt awesome, especially in such a big game.”
The Wizards had a chance to close the gap in the sixth when Gosselin led off with a single and Briggs followed with a walk, but Colbert settled down and bracketed a ground ball around a pair of strikeouts. The sophomore ended up striking out 13 Wizards.
Freshman Emma Pinault blooped a single down the right-field line and Sullivan walked to start the seventh inning to set the stage for a dramatic finish. The Wizards, however, failed to get a bunt down and Colbert was more than happy to take advantage of the situation to finish off her complete-game shutout.
“Honestly, I kind of like the pressure when there’s people on base,” Colbert said. “I’m cool with it when it happens. Coach came out and just said ‘Three more outs and we’ll be in the ship.’ I feel like that was my motivation to get through it.”
“Coach came out and just said ‘Three more outs and we’ll be in the ship.’ I feel like that was my motivation to get through it.”
— Julianna Colbert