Milford defeats Vermont, stays alive in East Region
BRISTOL – Connecticut champion Milford defeated Vermont title holder Connecticut Valley North 9-1 in an elimination game at the Little League Softball East Region at Breen Field in Bristol on Monday.
Milford returns to action against Maryland or New York Tuesday at 1 p.m. Vermont defeated Massachusetts 7-5 in eight innings on Monday to stay alive. It had lost 12-0 to New York in its opener. Milford fell 5-0 to New Jersey on Monday.
Abby Corris allowed four hits, struck out 10, and walked three in the victory.
Milford had nine hits and scored in five of six innings. It played error-free ball.
“The girls went into the batter’s box looking to be aggressive,” Milford coach Brian Corris said. “Having all 11 players getting involved is what makes this team go. We ran the bases, sacrificed, and Sophie Scarpa hit a bomb to dead center for a double to give us the lead in the second.”
Cassie Rodriguez (two), Gabby Rodriguez (two), Sophie Scarpa and Emily Roos had RBIs. Corris, Scarpa and Cassie Rodriguez hit doubles.
Vermont, which had put together a 16-hit attack against Rhode Island, scored its lone run in the bottom of the first. Ava Kingsbury singled home Abby Longto, who had doubled. Abby Corris allowed only two more hits.
‘Innings 2 through 6 Abby controlled the batters,” Corris said. “She worked the ball up and then outside. We watched Vermont beat Rhode Island and saw they could definitely hit. We talked with Soph (Scarpa) our catcher and game planned. We wanted to keep the ball away from the middle of the plate. Abby’s fastball came alive.”
Scarpa and Roos had RBIs in Milford’s two-run fourth. Olivia Gregory and Erika Fabian opened the rally with singles and scored in the inning.
Gabby Rodriguez drove in Scarpa (single) and Roos (walk) with a base hit when Milford brought four runs across in the sixth.
Fabian had two walks and a single. She scored three runs. Abby Corris doubled and scored a run. Fallon-Silva had a single and a sacrifice bunt that led to a run.
PANDEMIC SHUFFLE
Mifflinburg (Pa.) saw its stay at the East Region end when at least one person with the team tested positive for COVID-19.
Littleleague.org reported: In consultation with its medical advisors, Little League International has notified the (Mifflinburg) team that it will no longer be able to participate in the tournament. The team members and their families have been informed of all appropriate health measures to help ensure all individuals are cared for, and that appropriate isolation and quarantine efforts are being followed
The report didn’t indicate if the positive tester was a player or an adult.
Mifflinburg opened with a 13-2 win against Rhode Island on Monday. The test results gave Robbinsville (NJ) a 6-0 walk-over win on day two. It will play again on Tuesday at 7.
Delaware defeated Maine 5-2 to stay in contention Monday. It has been granted a 6-0 forfeit win against Pennsylvania and will play Tuesday at 4.