Team effort leads Taunton softball over Methuen and to second straight D1 title game
WORCESTER — For the second year in a row, the defending Division I champion Taunton softball team is headed to the title game.
Led by all-around efforts on offense and defense, the No. 2 Tigers defeated No. 7 Methuen 6-3 Wednesday night at Rockwood Field on the campus of Worcester State University to give themselves a chance to defend their crown.
“We’re not done yet,” Taunton coach Carrie Consalvi said. “It feels great to go back, especially with this team. I think we’ve been the quiet sleeper all season and I don’t think anyone expected us to be here. I believed in them, they believed in them and that’s all that it takes. It’s a complete team effort. We don’t have anybody pulling the reigns for us solo, it’s every single one of them contributing and I couldn’t be more proud.”
Kaysie Demoura led the way at the plate for the Tigers, going two-for-three with two runs and three RBIs off a pair of home runs in the first and third innings, with Taunton plating three runs each in both.
“As a catcher behind the plate she is really the glue that holds us together and to get up there at the plate and step up and just do that with ease and comfort is just the ultimate thing for us, so I’m so proud of her,” Consalvi said.
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“I felt calm, just ready to play,” Demoura said. “I saw the pitches and they went where they went and it was good to start up everyone. We had a rally going on after that and we put up the runs when we needed to, so we all played as a team and I think that’s what’s putting us on top of a lot of people.”
In the circle, Liv Mendonca earned the win as she went three and a third innings giving up two runs on five hits and four walks while striking out one. Cate Larson tossed the remaining three and two-thirds innings in relief giving up an unearned run and one hit while striking out three.
”I can’t say anything more about those two, they are a great one-two duo,” Consalvi said. “They couldn’t be any more opposite of each other (style-wise) and all year they’re there for each other to pick each other up and again just a great effort by both of them. They’ve kept us in games all year long so an awesome performance for both of them.”
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The Rangers, who finish the season with an overall record of 17-6, beat a pair of Hockomock League teams to make it to the Final Four as they downed both Attleboro and King Philip, who were two of the three teams to beat the Tigers this season. But they couldn’t make it three in a row as the Taunton offense combined for 11 hits, nine of which came off Methuen’s starter Ilene Rickard, who went three full innings giving up six runs on nine hits and a walk while striking out one.
“I think we were prepared for (Rickard),” Consalvi said. “I pay attention and I think these guys came in here with a game plan today against (Rickard) and they executed, so I’m super proud of them. That’s what practice is all about and today is just the show. Today is (when) you come out here and air it out and have fun and I think they did that.”
The Rangers struck first in the top of the first as Kiele Coleman hit a double and then came home on a two-out, bases-loaded single to right center and nearly had two but Kyra Meuse was thrown out at home by Angie Lynch to keep the damage to 1-0.
The Tigers wasted little time in responding as Kyleah Plumb bunted for a single and then after a pop out bunt by Lynch, Demoura sent a shot to right field that just cleared the fence for a two-run home run and the lead. Ava Venturelli doubled and Haley Krockta singled to follow before Victoria Carrao, pinch running for Venturelli, came home on a wild pitch to make it 3-1.
Methuen got one back in the top of the third as Makenna Donovan tripled and then came home on a single by Jenny Grelle the next at-bat to cut the lead to 3-2.
Again though, Taunton wasted no time in responding as Demoura led off the inning with another home run to right, this time a solo shot to make it 4-2.
“The first one I looked up and was like ‘ohh’ because it hit the back of the yellow (on the fence) but the second one I looked and I was just like ‘ok,’” Demoura said. “I saw it coming, I felt it. It was the same swing as the first one and it felt short, simple and it did what it did.”
Back to back doubles from Krockta and Brooke Aldrich followed, the latter scoring Krockta while Aldrich came home on a triple by Mendonca which saw her thrown out at home as she tried to stretch it into an inside the park home run, but the Tigers left the inning up 6-2.
The Rangers got one back again in the fourth as Avry Nelson got on due to an error by Aldrich and Colleen McNamara singled before a fielder’s choice by Coleman saw Nelson thrown out at home but an overthrow to third by Demoura bring in McNamara to make it 6-3.
It would stay that way from there as Mackenzie Yirrell entered the game in the fourth and shut down the Taunton offense, tossing the final three innings giving up just two hits while striking out three.
Luckily for Taunton, Larson did the same in the circle for them, keeping any chance of a Methuen comeback at bay.
“Sometimes it’s hard coming in as a closer in tough situations but I always love picking up my team and I know that my defense will back me up, so I’m pretty confident in my defense back there,” Larson said.
The Tigers now head back to the championship for the second year in row where they’ll face No. 9 Peabody, who upset Taunton’s opponent from last year, No. 4 Wachusett, on Friday at 5:30 p.m. at UMass’s Sortino Field.
“It’s an honor to get there,” Consalvi said. “We’ve played some good teams along the way and hopefully it’s prepared us to go up against Peabody. On any given day anything can happen so we’ll back to work over the next day and get ready for them.”
For Demoura, the Tigers’ burning desire to go back-to-back is undeniable.
“This team wants it very much so,” Demoura said. “This team wants to be on top and we want to prove everyone wrong. We play as a team and when we do, we seem to overtake a lot of teams. When the team is on, we follow after each other and we play the game we know how and everybody backs everyone up no matter what happens, errors, home runs, singles, doubles, the pitchers, we’re all there to back them all u during the whole game.”
And just like they have with every game this year, the team is approaching it head first together.
“I’m feeling really good about it. I think the whole team is feeling really good about it. We’re ready to win, we’re ready to bring it back home and that’s the goal,” Demoura said. “Everybody is on the same page to go in there as a united front and take them down.”
Stats
Other top performers for Taunton on offense include Krockta, who went two-for-three with a run, Aldrich, who went one-for-three with a run and an RBI, Kylie Thorpe, who went two-for-three and Plumb, who went one-for-four with a run.
The Rangers were led offensively by Donovan, who went two-for-three with a run, while Coleman went one-for-four with a run and McNamara went one-for-two with a run.
Taunton Daily Gazette sports reporter Cameron Merritt can be reached at cmerritt@tauntongazette.com. You can follow him on Twitter at @CamMerritt_News. Support local journalism by purchasing a digital or print subscription to the Taunton Daily Gazette today.
This article originally appeared on The Taunton Daily Gazette: Team effort leads Taunton over Methuen and into D1 title game
