GROVELAND — A consistent hallmark of a great team is one that shows it can win in different ways.
And so far this spring, Pentucket softball is proving that it could be special.
During its opening four games of the season up until this point, the Panthers had slugged their way to four straight victories averaging 14.3 runs each time out. That all changed on Monday afternoon, when Triton and two-time reigning Daily News MVP Emma Penniman provided by far the toughest pitching challenge yet. But even though that 14.3 run average got reduced to just two hits, the result remained the same for the Panthers.
Again, just find a way to win.
Tied at 1-1 in the bottom of the seventh inning, Pentucket got half of its hits on the day when Kam Bonneau crushed a single to left field. The freshman then wisely took second base when the throw back into the infield got away, setting the stage for Mia Bartholomew to be the hero. The senior captain laid down a perfect bunt down the third base line, and the throw to first bounced into the outfield allowing Bonneau to score, and the Panthers to celebrate a thrilling walkoff victory over the Vikings, 2-1, to remain perfect.
“This is the best team we’ve ever had, the best team we’ve coached,” said Pentucket coach Deb Smith. “We can’t get better leadership than the four returning seniors we have, they’re unbelievable. Then we’re stacked with our bats, they’re all working well together, and everything is just meshing well.
“Everyone is doing their jobs.”
Coming into the game, you knew it was going to be a pitcher’s duel.
Two of the area’s best for the past few years were facing off yet again, and despite taking the tough-luck loss, Penniman was sensational for Triton (3-3). The two hits allowed from the senior resulted in just one earned run, and she would pile up 14 strikeouts to go against no walks.
Then on the other side, of course Molly LeBel — the newest member of the 600-strikeout club — kept up for Pentucket (5-0). The senior and two-time Daily News All-Star only surrendered five hits herself, and of course allowed just the one earned run with six punchouts. And she twice got the Panthers out of trouble, somehow escaping a 1st-and-3rd, no out situation in the top of the fifth to keep it scoreless at the time, then getting a huge strikeout to leave the bases loaded an inning later.
“Molly has been amazing for us so far this year,” said Smith. “Then she was tough as nails in so many tense situations today. That might be one of her best ever games.”
Scoreless through four innings, the action finally started to pick up.
Thanks to a walk followed by an error, Triton had runners at the corners with no outs in the top of the fifth. Alyssa Ewell then crushed a line drive for the Vikings, but unfortunately it was right at first baseman Mia Gabardi for what ended up being an easy double-up. LeBel then escaped unscathed with a strikeout, and Pentucket took its first lead in the bottom of the frame when Caitlin McCoy blasted a solo home run directly over the 195-foot fence in dead center field.
It was the second homer in as many games for the sophomore.
But Triton, the three-time CAL Kinney champs, wasn’t going away.
Leadoff hitter Maggie Rennick started the top of the sixth with a single to left, and would advance to second on a one-out Addison Ewell single. LeBel got Penniman to pop out for a huge second out of the inning, but Jillian Giusto would come up huge for the Vikings with a bloop single to left that scored Rennick and tied the game. Ava Johnson — who stepped in admirably in her first start at catcher — drew a walk to load the bases, but LeBel would again buckle down and get a punchout to limit the damage to just one.
And eventually, that would set the stage for the walk off.
The Vikings would outhit the Panthers on the day while getting another gem in the circle from Penniman, but the two errors in the top of the seventh is what ended up being the difference.
“We outplayed them, we just made two mistakes that cost us the game,” said Triton coach Alan Noyes. “We out-hit them around 8-to-1, they got the home run and the single and that was it. So in my opinion we outplayed them, but they got a break in the end and we didn’t. You can’t make mistakes against good teams like that.”
Pentucket 2, Triton 1
Triton (1): Maggie Rennick cf 4-1-1, Maddie January rf 3-0-0, Addison Ewell ss 2-0-1, Emma Penniman p 3-0-0, Jillian Giusto 1b 3-0-1, Ava Johnson c 1-0-0, Izze Turner 3b 3-0-1, Alyssa Ewell 2b 3-0-0, Laura Zahornasky lf 3-0-0. Totals 25-1-4
Pentucket (2): Sarah Freitas 2b 3-0-0, Kayla Murphy ss 3-0-0, Evelyn Howell rf 3-0-0, Kam Bonneau dh 2-1-1, Mia Bartholomew lf 3-0-0, Kallie White 3b 2-0-0, Caitlin McCoy 2-1-1, Mia Gabardi 1b 2-0-0, Ciara Penne c 2-0-0, Molly LeBel p 0-0-0. Totals 22-2-2
RBI: P — McCoy; T — Giusto
WP: LeBel; LP: Penniman
Triton (3-3) 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 — 1
Pentucket (5-0): 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 — 2