Greenwich bats unable to keep pace with Ridgefield

There was no shortage of offense in Thursday’s FCIAC softball matchup between Ridgefield and Greenwich, as the squads combined for 23 runs, 24 hits and five home runs.

And duo of Skylar Arent and Julia Clavi made sure the Tigers had more of an offensive spark from their lineup.

Arent, a sophomore, went 4 for 5 with a two-run home run and four RBIs, while Clavi had four hits in five at-bats and homered in Ridgefield’s impressive 15-8 win over host Greenwich in an FCIAC game.

“We are swinging the bats really well lately,” Arent said. “Our entire lineup hit the ball well today and we hope it continues.”

For Greenwich (6-4), senior Charli Faugno hit a three-run home run and senior shortstop Emma Beinstein smashed a solo homer. The Cardinals lost three straight games this week, after starting the season 6-1. Six errors hurt the Cardinals Thursday against the Tigers.

“Our team has to erase this week from our memory and get back to playing good defense,” GHS coach Mary Beth Fratello said. “We can’t make six errors and expect to win.”

The tone of the game was set by Arent in the first inning. She hit a Sophia Prieto fastball over the fence for a two-run home run, giving the visitors a 2-0 lead.

“The first pitch was inside, then I got my pitch and I was able to get a good swing on it,” Arent said of her home run.

Beinstein cut Ridgefield’s lead to 2-1 with a home run by hitting an Alyssa DeStefano pitch over the center field fence for a homer in the bottom of the second.

A pivotal six-run third inning put the Tigers on top, 8-1. Junior shortstop Sabrina Grizzaffi tripled and scored on Clavi’s single to left field, making it 3-1. Senior outfielder Lauren Bayer delivered a two-run single off Prieto later in the inning and Sarina Sheth brought two runs home with a single, extending Ridgefield’s advantage to 8-1.

Run-scoring singles from Arent and junior infielder Makena Skrobar put GHS in a 10-1 hole in the fourth inning.

“Today, we just swung the bats well, everyone was getting good at-bats,” Arent said. “Their pitcher was throwing hard, but you have to go up there and make adjustments.”

Greenwich closed to within 10-4 when Faugno, a senior outfielder, hit a threerun home run off Destefano in the fourth inning, after Beinstein and Katie Walko each singled.

“The way we hit today was better than the last two days, but we still have to improve,” Faugno said. “When we are hitting as well as we know we could there is no stopping us.”

After Ridgefield added an unearned run in the fifth inning, making it 11-4, the Cards cut their deficit to 11-7 on an RBI single from senior outfielder Julie Gambino and run-scoring singles from Walko and senior Kelly Brogan. Arent pitched part of the fifth inning, before DeStefano was re-inserted back into the game and took over the pitching responsibilities.

Skrobar hit a sacrifice fly, and Bayer smashed a home run, keying a three-run sixth inning for Ridgefield. Clavi capped her big game with a homer in the seventh inning.

Senior Michelle Morganti had an RBI single in the seventh inning for Greenwich, which finished with 10 hits, while the Tigers pounded out 14.