ACS Swat Comes Back, Edges Liberty for 16U County Title
SHEFFIELD, Mass. -- The Adams-Cheshire-Savoy 16-year-old travel softball team Friday rallied from a three-run deficit to take a 4-3 win in the Berkshire County final ... and the friendliest rivalry you're going to find.
"The [Berkshire] Liberty players and coaches are an absolute class act," ACS Swat coach Lou Moser said. "We love these guys.
"We're going to invite them up to our field later on in August to do a mixed team scrimmage. They're great people, great people. Very efficient game on both sides. It was a one-run game, which is just what you want for a championship."
Emily Glasier went 2-for-4with a double and a run scored in the middle of the Swat's game-winning rally, and Haley McNeice struck out seven while allowing just one walk to earn the win in the circle.
The top-seeded and host Liberty jumped on top early, scoring runs in the first, second and third innings.
Julia Devoti doubled to lead off the first. She eventually scored when Hudah Ngoy Nkulu reached on a fielder's choice with the bases loaded.
McNeice got a swinging third strike to end the inning and strand a pair of runners.
In the second, Emily Steuernagle led off with a single, stole second and came home on Meg Loring's single to center to make it 2-0.
Tori Gilmore hit a one-out double and ended up coming home on a Ngoy Nkulu groundout to stretch it to a three-run lead going to the fourth.
The Swat got on the board in the fourth with a four-hit rally that yieleded just one run thanks to Steuernagle's performance in the circle for the Liberty.
Zoe Levesque led off with a single, and she was followed by singles from Emma Moser, Karlie Gregoire-Thomas and Danielle Glasier, the last driving in Levesque to make it 3-1.
Steuernagle struck out the next two hitters and got a groundball to the right side to strand three runners and keep the Liberty in the lead.
The Swat broke through in the fifth,when the first three batters reached base and scored.
First, Mikayla Witto hit an infield single. Then, after Katherine Richardson walked and a ball to the backstop put two runners in scoring position, Emily Glasier singled ot left to drive in Witto.
Richardson went to third on Glasier's single and scored on a groundout off the bat of Moser to tie it. Glasier ended up scoring on a ball to the backstop to put ACS on top for good.
The Liberty put runners aboard in the sixth and seventh innings, but McNeice closed the door both times, including by snaring a comebacker in the circle with a runner on second and one out in the bottom of the seventh.
"I told them when we got here tonight, this is a tough team and things weren not coming very easy for us," Lou Moser said. "We've been getting better every practice and every game, and that's all you want to do.
"You peak at the right time, and good things are going to happen. We won our last two games, and they were very important games, one in the playoffs and the other to win the championship. I couldn't be proud of these girls."
