Fever Pitch

For the first time in nearly a decade, the North Little League Girls Softball 9/10 All-Stars have won the Division 10 Championship.

Cheers from packed stands at the ball field behind Quaker Hill Elementary School were so loud last night they could be heard from the overflow parking lot as Waterford went head-to-head with Pawcatuck. The game was a real nail-biter.

Each team seemed to take turns tying it up at the end of an inning until, at the bottom of the fifth in this six-inning game, the score was 8 – 8. Outstanding pitching by Payton Howser, who pitched throughout and consistently threw strikes, coupled with a game-changing triple, hit by Ashlee Hancock on an error for a home run, pushed Waterford ahead and sealed the deal.

Many of the players said they saw Hancock’s homer as the turning point. “She tied the game for us,” said Jessica Cleary, 11, who plays third base and center. The best moment for Hancock, however, was when Payton threw “the winning out,” to give Waterford an 11 – 8 victory over Pawcatuck.

For one parent, who coached the team last year, the win was “sweet revenge.” This year’s coaches couldn’t be happier.

“The girls came to play today,” said team manager Greg Terracciano. “They were loose. They were having fun making cheers. We let them have fun. We didn’t want any pressure on them.”

That strategy seemed to pay off because, Terracciano added, “it’s the best game we’ve hit.”

Terracciano has coached Little League for 14 years but this was his first year coaching girls.  The biggest difference he’s noted so far is that, after a big win, the boys never sprayed his head with blue hair dye!

The team now advances to the sectionals, which will be held July 13 through July 17. If they can round that base, North Little League Girls Softball 9/10 All-Stars will be off to the state championship. After yesterday’s victory, 10-year-old Erin McBride thinks anything is possible.

“I have great confidence in my team,” she said.