SALISBURY, Md. -- Ava McMahon scattered four hits in a six-inning, complete-game shutout Wednesday as the Berkshire Force 16-and-under travel softball team stayed alive in bracket play at the United States Specialty Sports Association's Eastern National Championship.

 

Berkshire's day started with a 9-6 win over the Maryland's Havenwood Revolution. But then the Force fell to the Saratoga Thunder, 12-1, to drop into the tournament's losers bracket.

 

Against Havenwood, Lexi Spratling went 2-for-4 with a pair of doubles and scored three runs to spur the offense. McMahon had a 2-for-3 game at the plate with three runs batted in, and Mackenzie Biros doubled in a 13-hit Berkshire attack.

 

Amelia Polidoro and McMahon split time in the circle on Wednesday morning, combining to strike out seven.

 

The Saratoga Thunder out of Saratoga Springs, N.Y., scored seven runs in the third inning to pull away in a four-inning win. Polidoro had a single and an RBI, and Spratling went 2-for-2 in the loss.

 

The Force then bounced back with two wins in the losers bracket.

 

First, Julia McComish went 3-for-3 with a home run and five runs batted in in a 14-5 win over the Bayside Blues of Maryland.