Spring-Ford hits 5 homers, smashes Boyertown, 15-1
BOYERTOWN >> Samantha Lindsay might have to get used to it.
“This game feels like it’s been going for five hours,” the Spring-Ford pitcher said to her teammates during the fourth inning Wednesday.
That’s how it goes with a lineup as explosive as the Spring-Ford softball team’s.
The Rams looked as if they hadn’t missed a beat from last year’s team that ran the table in the Pioneer Athletic Conference on Wednesday with a five-inning, 15-1 victory over Boyertown.
At wind-swept Boyertown, the Rams’ bats were constantly connecting (17 hits), including five home runs thanks to first baseman Ashley Della Guardia (2-for-3, 3 RBI), pitcher Samantha Lindsay (3-for-4, 3 RBI), shortstop Bri Peck (triple, 2-for-5, 2 RBI), outfielder Noelle Reid and Jules Ryan (2-for-3). They led 9-0 after two innings and tacked on another five in the fourth thanks to three homers, including back-to-back blasts from Lindsay and Ryan.
“The season has been awesome so far,” said senior ace Lindsay. “We just come out and play our best.”
Spring-Ford went 16-0 in the league last season, and was positioned to win the league championship if not for the PAC playoffs being cancelled due to a week of torrential rain. Ultimately, the team went 17-2, the season ending prematurely after being upset as the No. 2 seed in the second round of the District 1 playoffs.
The Rams are out to a 6-0 start after opening the season in Florida at Disney’s Wide World of Sports where they went 3-0.
Senior second baseman Julia Heine (2-for-3, RBI) believes the Rams are already seeing the benefits on and off the field.
“You get to see good competition and you also get the team-bonding aspect which is a huge part of our program and our team this year,” she said.
“It feels like we didn’t miss a beat from the end of the year last year to the first game this season. I think we have all the momentum in the right direction this year.”
The Bears fell to 2-3 after playing a close game in every game prior, including a quality 6-5 win over Owen J. Roberts on March 29. Kylie Hertzler, Morgan Sauers, Rachel Hartman and Caitlin Keenan (RBI) had Boyertown’s only hits off of Lindsay (3 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 3 K, 2 BB) and reliever Jules Scogna (2 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 5 K).
Lindsay, a four-year starter, worked on her pitching variety in the offseason.
“I focused on my rise ball and changeup,” she said. “I struggled with my changeup a bit last year, but I’m going to need that going forward this year and next. I also worked on my confidence level. I wanted to up it out there because you need it, especially on the mound.”
With every starting player returning, the Rams had no need to readjust their goals, which, if all goes to plan, includes finishing what they weren’t given the chance to last year.
“I think the motivation is pretty much the same because it’s the same core group,” Lindsay said. “We’re just trying to build on it because we’re still working great together as a team.”
Spring-Ford 15, Boyertown 1
SPRING-FORD BOYERTOWN
ab r h bi ab r h bi
Reid 3 2 1 1 Weber 2 0 0 0
Tennity 1 1 1 0 Smith 2 0 0 0
Peck 5 2 2 2 Black 2 0 0 0
Hughes 3 4 2 1 Hurlock 1 0 0 0
Ryan 3 2 2 2 Shaner 2 0 0 0
Cortino 1 0 0 0 Hertzler 2 0 1 0
Lindsay 4 1 3 3 Sauers 2 1 1 0
Scogna 1 0 0 0 Buckley 2 0 0 0
Sharkey 1 1 0 1 Hartman 2 0 1 0
Walsh 1 0 1 0 Keenan 2 0 1 1
DellaGuardia 3 2 2 3
Griffin 1 0 0 0
Heine 3 0 2 1
Little 2 0 1 0
Potteiger 1 0 0 0
Totals 33 15 17 14 Totals 19 1 4 1
Spring-Ford 541 50 — 15
Boyertown 000 10 — 1
E — SF 1, B 3. 2B-Heine, Ryan, Walsh; Keenan. 3B-Peck. HR-Della Guardia, Lindsay, Peck, Reid, Ryan. SB-Tennity.
IP H R ER BB SO
Spring-Ford
Lindsay (W) 3.0 2 0 0 2 3
Scogna 2.0 2 1 1 0 5
Boyertown
Schaefer (L) 1.0 5 8 4 5 1
Keenan 4.0 12 7 7 2 1
