Late barrage lifts New Hope-Solebury over Morrisville
MORRISVILLE — On some days, the hits just don’t come.
For Morrisville, one of those afternoons came Friday, May 8 when New Hope-Solebury paid a visit to Williamson Park. The Lady Bulldogs made contact with pitches 19 times, but only one of those found a gap and went for a single.
Eventually, the inability to generate a consistent offense caught up to Morrisville. A three-run double by the Lions Logan Moore in the top of the fifth inning broke open a 3-3 deadlock, and New Hope-Solebury pulled away from there in a 9-3 triumph.
“They outhit us,’ Bulldogs coach Lisa Colon said. “When you only have one hit, there’s not much you can do.’
When starting center fielder Shayla Santiago blooped a single into left field in the bottom of the second, it looked as if the tides were really about to turn in Morrisville’s favor. Lions starting pitcher Natalie Borys was having trouble finding the strike zone, and the Bulldogs were capitalizing on walks, small ball and wild pitches. A 3-0 Lions advantage had been cut to 3-2, and the top of the order was coming up for the Bulldogs.
Instead, Borys worked her way out of a jam, though she did get pulled in the following frame after walking three of the five batters she faced. The pressure was then put on reliever Shaelee Black, who hit senior first baseman Sidney Knott with a pitch to force in the tying run since the bases were loaded. However, any further damage was avoided thanks to Lions second baseman Shalyn Parker, who made a diving snare on an infield blooper for the third out and likely prevented a two-run single in the process.
“The hitting is not a concern because normally, we come out and hit,’ Bulldogs senior catcher Delila Mena said. “It’s not that we weren’t making contact. We were just hitting it right to them.’
“Their second baseman played an amazing game,’ Colon added about Parker, who suffered a minor arm injury on the catch but remained in the game. “She definitely put her body on the line and it was pretty impressive.’
With one out in the top of the fifth of a relatively hit-free game, since Santiago’s single was one of only two in the contest to that point, changed in a hurry when Sarah Wilson and Marissa McDermott singled off Morrisville starting pitcher Maggie Colon. In-between, Sam Renson was hit by a pitch to load the bases, and Mohr made the Bulldogs pay with a long drive over left fielder Sumayah Snow’s head. Just like that, the Bulldogs efforts to claw back into the game were erased.
“I was down 0-2,’ said Mohr about her double. A senior catcher, she has committed to play next year at the University of Rochester and was 1-for-4 in the win. “It was right down the middle and I felt it off the bat.’
“I’m glad I could help my team,’ she added.
Morrisville was unable to figure out Black from there, as she retired nine of the final 10 batters she faced to earn the win. The Lions offense helped her out with some insurance, too, as in the top of the sixth, Wilson smacked her third hit of the game. Coupled with a walk and hit by pitch, and with two outs, third baseman Caleigh Roach stepped up with the bases full. She belted a Maggie Colon offering to center field for a two-run single, which was followed by Parker reaching on an error to bring in the Lions final tally.
New Hope-Solebury’s other runs came in the first inning due to a wild pitch and an error on a ground ball that allowed two players to cross home plate.
“This one wasn’t that bad,’ Maggie Colon said about the frustration of the New Hope-Solebury setback. Another senior and this year’s primary pitcher for the Bulldogs, she will attend Bucks County Community College next year but is not planning on playing softball anymore. “We couldn’t find the holes when they could.’
“Just to have fun playing for the time being. It’s my last two games,’ she continued about her goals for the remainder of the season.
There were bright spots for the Bulldogs in the losing effort, including a complete game for Colon that saw her strike out 13 Lion batters while walking just five. Morrisville also was patient at the plate early, which led to five walks being issued by Borys before she was pulled. A nice sacrifice bunt in the bottom of the second inning by senior right fielder De’Shira Jones set up a second-and-third situation for Knott. She delivered with a RBI groundout to score Mena to make it 3-1, and during the next at-bat, a wild pitch by Borys brought in sophomore right fielder Kayla Romanek.
Still, the loss dropped Morrisville to 10-8 overall and 7-5 in the Bicentennial Athletic League (BAL). A pair of games against Delco Christian April 11 and 13 are all that remain on the regular season schedule. From there, the Bulldogs should make the District I playoffs, but will have a tough road to a shot at states.
“As long as we play fundamental softball, we’ll be okay,’ Bulldogs junior third baseman Breanna Howard said.
The Lions, meanwhile, improved to 9-6 on the year and will also wrap up their regular season slate next week before getting a chance to reach their full potential in the playoffs. They have now won four of their last five games.
