RICHMOND

Ask a senior on the Richmond High School softball team about starting quickly come playoff time, each will say it is essential.

Vinalhaven/North Haven found out just how much emphasis the Bobcats put on getting out to a big early lead, as Richmond scored 15 first-inning runs in cruising to a 19-0 mercy-rule win in a Class D South semifinal on Friday.

“That is what we have preached all season, and to do it in a playoff game is awesome,” said Richmond first baseman Cassidy Harriman, who was 4-for-4 with a double, two runs scored and three RBIs. “We are friends with some of the girls on that team. We didn’t want to look like jerks, but we had a game to win.”

The Bobcats advance to their 14th straight regional final appearance and will seek their eighth straight regional title on Tuesday at 3:30 p.m. Top-seeded Richmond (17-0) meets No. 2 Greenville at Saint Joseph’s College in Standish.

Richmond used 14 hits and took advantage of six Viking errors in jumping out to the 15-0 lead. Meranda Martin had three hits in the big first frame, including a two-run triple that greeted reliever Ashlyn Littlefield, who came on for Gilleyanne Davis-Oakes after eight of the first nine Bobcats reached.

Martin’s triple made it 8-0 and Richmond kept hitting, getting offense from Caitlin Kendrick (RBI single), Harriman, Emily Douin (RBI double) and Mackenzie Abbott (RBI single).

Meanwhile, Richmond pitcher Sydney Underhill- Tilton was cruising. She retired the first 11 Vikings that she faced, relying on her defense to make the plays behind her. Martin hustled from behind the plate to make four foul-pop catches, while Kendrick at shortstop was flawless in three chances. Underhill- Tilton struck out two.

“They hit the ball, but we played solid defense,” said Richmond coach Tony Martin.

Morse runs

Richmond wasn’t done at the plate. Underhill-Tilton led off the second inning with a home run to left-center field for a 16-0 contest.

The Bobcats tacked on three more runs in the third. Meranda Martin, who was 4- for-5, singled, followed by a single by Camryn Hurley. Underhill-Tilton (3-for-3) brought home a run with a single, and Harriman capped her big day with a two-run double to the fence in left-center field. Douin was 3-for-3 on the day, while Kendrick and Kaylee Williams both had a pair of hits.

“We have met most of our goals. Our goal was to win this game, and now our goal is to win the regional,” said Harriman.

Underhill-Tilton allowed just one base runner — a fourth-inning two-out single by Davis-Oakes, who returned to the mound, finishing with 2 1/3 innings on 10 hits, two walks and four strikeouts. Littlefield pitched 1 2/3 frames on 11 hits and two strikeouts.

Now comes a rematch with Greenville, which fell to the Bobcats in last season’s Class D South semifinal, 18-1. Coach Martin said his team is focused on advancing to this upcoming Saturday’s state title game.

“We’re just going to focus on our game and use it as just another game,” said Tony Martin. “These girls, they are used to the playoffs, whether it is basketball or soccer, no matter the venue. Softball, we are used to playing at Saint Joe’s and that is a good thing to have in your pocket.”

No. 1 Richmond 19,
No. 4 Vinalhaven/NH 0

Class D South Softball Semifinal
Friday, at Richmond
Vinal/NH — 000 00 — 0- 1-6
Richmond — (15)13 0X — 19-21-0
Gilleyanne Davis-Oakes, Ashlyn Littlefield (1), Gilleyanne Davis-Oakes (3)
and Hannah Ames; Sydney Underhill-
Tilton and Meranda Martin.
WP — Underhill-Tilton; LP — Davis-
Oakes.
Doubles — (R) Emily Douin, Cassidy
Harriman.
Triple — (R) Meranda Martin.
Repeat hitters — (R) Meranda Martin (4), Caitlin Kendrick, Cassidy Harriman (4), Emily Douin (3), Kaylee
Williams, Sydney Underhill-Tilton (3).
Records —Richmond 17-0; Vinalhaven/ North Haven 12-6.
Up next for the Bobcats — Class D
South Regional final against No. 2
Greenville, Tuesday at Saint Joseph’s
College in Standish, 3:30 p.m.