Amity lurking with postseason play right around the corner
Teams across all the conferences are making their final preparation for the postseason, when hardware will he handed out. While many leagues have clear favorites, or just two teams with a realistic chance of winning, one conference has several.
The SCC features more than a handful of teams capable of winning both conference and state titles, a testament to the sheer depth of the league. One team that accomplished the latter last year continues to lurk after some early-season growing pains.
Amity has won seven of its last eight game games with just one week left in the regular season. The Spartans sit at 12-4 threequarters of the way through a schedule that features some of the league’s best teams. It has been done with a relatively inexperienced roster that was largely turned over from last year’s Class LL winning group.
“It’s been going very well,” said Amity coach Sara Hale. “They jelled early on and it’s been coming together. We’re trying to take it game-by-game and make those adjustments. Hopefully things start clicking right; if all pistons are firing we’ll be hard to beat in the postseason.”
Wins usually follow in Woodbridge, though. Amity is No. 8 in the Class LL rankings and will be a tough out in both tournaments. Amity is led by a mostly sophomore and junior lineup with just three seniors on the roster. Third baseman Marissa Dwyer is one of the top players in the conference while senior catcher Rachel Crow is the de-facto leader of the squad.
“Daisy (Brownfield) and Rachel are two of our seniors,” Hale said. “They really have put the team on their shoulders. We didn’t have to tell them; they just kind of know it’s a young team. They’re doing a nice job.”
The growth of the Spartans can be summed up in 24 hours against their arch rival. Last Tuesday Amity fell 3-0 to Cheshire as Bri Pearson fired a no-hitter. The next day — thanks to an earlier rainout — the Spartans made the necessary adjustments and responded with a 3-2 win. It was the first triumph for Hale over Cheshire.
“It was a cool environment going from playing them away and playing them home back-to-back,” Hale said. “I was super proud of my girls; obviously we struggled in the first game but we made adjustments. We saw what (Pearson) was throwing and made suggestions.”
Sophomore Kelly Pritchard and junior Abby Fletcher have split time in the circle all season long.
Elsewhere in the SCC, Lyman Hall had a special win Wednesday as its 4-3 triumph over Guilford was a fundraiser for one of the school’s teachers.
The Trojans wore Orange ribbons in honor of teacher John Mackey, who is battling Leukemia. Mackey threw out the first pitch of the game and his family attended the game. The game also served as a fundraiser; the proceeds went to the Mackey family.