WATERVILLE — Alana Weaver pitched to contact all afternoon Wednesday as Mt. Ararat posted a 12-3 victory against Messalonskee in a Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference Class A softball opener at Colby College.

Weaver, staked to a 7-0 lead in the second inning, was more than happy to let her defense handle most of the chances. She scattered seven hits and collected five strikeouts.

“I’ve tried to always be as accurate as I can be, but I did have the team to back me up when (Messalonskee) did make contact,” Weaver said. “They were always there for me. It’s nice to have them.”

Weaver’s first pitch of the game was stung into left field by Alyssa Smith of Messalonskee, but Weaver retired the next nine. She closed the first inning with back-to-back strikeouts.

Mt. Ararat Coach Allen Graffam said Weaver has matured as a pitcher.

“She’s been doing that for a long time,” Graffam said. “She doesn’t get rattled; she doesn’t walk many people. If they hit it, we just have to make a play. We have a good defense.”

Advertisement

Lauren Patrie of Messalonskee walked 14 and was charged with three wild pitches. Over the first two innings, she walked seven and five scored.

Three more walks in the fourth led to two more Mt. Ararat runs.

Katelyn Cox (3 for 3, 3 RBI) delivered a two-run double in the second inning and Morgan Johnson’s drive to left field one-hopped the fence for another two-run double in the fourth.

“It was very frustrating,” said Messalonskee Coach Samantha Moore, who felt Patrie wasn’t getting calls on some pitches over the corners.

“It could be easy to blame the weather and blame the day, and blame it on the first game out, but we’ve put in a lot of work. I feel like there are no excuses at this point. We just need to focus on what we need to fix, and that’s what we’ll be working on.”

Belle Benner (2 for 4, 3 RBI) added a two-run single to right-center in the fifth that made it 11-2.

Advertisement

“Our bats have really been on fire this season so far, with the scrimmages and stuff,” Weaver said. “I think we kind of knew that this was going to be a good year for us. Last year we had a strong team and we only lost one senior off that team. We kind of felt like we could come out strong.”

Sarah Labbe’s RBI infield hit in the bottom of the fourth cut into a nine-run deficit, but Messalonskee was unable to turn baserunners into big rallies against Weaver.

Smith went 3 for 4 with a double out of the leadoff spot, but the heart of the order was unable to bring her around.

Weaver, who may have taken some lumps as an underclassman, was a big reason Messalonskee never got into a rhythm.

“I trust my defense completely,” Weaver said. “My pitches, I think I’ve just improved over the years. I had some downfalls but I think I’ve gotten over them.”

MEDOMAK VALLEY 9, OCEANSIDE 5: Gabrielle Depatsy struck out four in 61/3 innings, and also tripled and drove in a run as the Panthers won an opener in eight innings at Rockland.

Advertisement

Lydia Simmons added a pair of hits for Medomak. Alexis Mazurek went 3 for 3 and drove in three runs for the Mariners, and Lauren Hatch had two hits and two RBI.

Chloe Jones of Oceanside allowed six runs and struck out one.

POLAND 7, LAKE REGION 0: Amanda Gagne pitched a two-hit shutout as Poland won an opener at home.

The Knights totaled six runs over the first two innings, led by Sarah Walton, who hit two doubles and finished with three RBI.

BASEBALL

OCEANSIDE 7, MEDOMAK VALLEY 4: Logan Sheridan carried a perfect game into the fifth inning and Michael Dougherty drove in two runs as the Mariners won an opener at Rockland.

Advertisement

Sheridan allowed one earned run on two hits, striking out five in five innings.

Jack Freeman added a pair of hits and drove in a run, and Hunter Davis and Conner Harvey each added RBI singles.

Brent Stewart took the loss, allowing three earned runs in five innings. Stewart also delivered an RBI single.

FALMOUTH 3, GRAY-NEW GLOUCESTER 0: Cam Guarino struck out 14 in a three-hit shutout to lead the Yachtsmen in an opener at Gray.

Max Fortier drove in Colin Coyne on a fielder’s choice in the first inning to put Falmouth up 1-0. Griffin Aube extended the lead to 2-0 with an RBI single in the third, and Garrett Aube added a sacrifice fly in the fourth.

Robbie Armitage had two hits for the Yachtsmen, including a triple.


Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.

Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.