Connetquot tops Sachem North in softball

Catcher Angela Shuler did her damage early and first baseman Kaitlin Muhlenforth did it late in Connetquot’s 5-2 road win over Sachem North in League II play on Thursday.

Tied at 2 heading into the top of the sixth inning, second baseman Nicole Wieczorek drove in center fielder Emma O’Donnell with the go-ahead run, before pinch hitter Erin Massmann delivered a fielder’s choice, plating Wieczorek, to make it 4-2.

Muhlenforth, who finished 3-for-3 with a double, scored on a wild pitch for the game’s final margin. Schuler went 3-for-3 with a run and a walk.

The win moved Connetquot (4-1) into second place in League II behind Bay Shore (5-0). The Flaming Arrows (3-3) dropped to third place.

“It was definitely a big game,” Thunderbirds coach Tom Anziano said. “It was important to re-establish ourselves. The kids needed it to get the win to know they really belong there.”
Sachem North scored two in the top of the first inning off Connetquot’s Erin Sweeney, courtesy of two infield errors, a base hit, and a walk.

Sweeney would settle down after that, pitching a complete game, allowing three hits, two earned runs and three walks, while striking out six for the victory.

“They’re a good team. We kind of had one bad inning,” Sachem North coach Ken Sasso said. “Most of our contacts were groundouts, hitting them right at them.”

Shuler singled in the third inning and came around to score on designated player Casey Shannon’s RBI single to cut the Flaming Arrows' lead to 2-1.

Sweeney reached on a fielder’s choice in the top of the fifth, before courtesy runner Massmann stole second, went to third on a wild pitch, and had Shannon drive her home with a sacrifice fly to tie it at 2.

Flaming Arrows pitcher Rebecca Amadeo tossed a complete game nine-hitter.

Connetquot next hosts Central Islip at 4 p.m. on April 15, and Sachem North heads to Brentwood in non-league play at 4 p.m. on April 16.