Strong defense, quality pitching, and clutch hits were essential components to the Mustangs’ 9-5 win over the Starters in the 2017 Shore Haven Junior Baseball softball championship game Thursday night at Shore Haven.
On the offensive end, Hannah Burrows drove in Julia Merola on a single and Hannah Davey added to the first inning with a steal home. With two scoreless innings to follow and down, 5-2, the Mustangs knew they had to step up and add more runs to the board. In the bottom of the fourth after a runner was walked in, Kaylee Sellner drove in one run on a single and Emma Davey followed suit with a double and two RBIs.
In the bottom of the fifth, Sarah Davey stepped up to the plate with two runners on and came through with a single, scoring a pair, and eventually scored the final run on a walk-in.
The Mustangs’ success rode on the back of the strong defense the team displayed that night. Sisters Emma and Hannah Davey came ready to play in the first inning as they threw out a runner stealing third. Hannah Burrows was the starting pitcher and held the Starters to only two runs in the first two innings, and, after three runs scored in the top of the third, she ended the inning with a groundout and strikeout.
In her three innings, Hannah had three strikeouts, five groundouts, and only three walks. Hannah Davey stepped in as the reliever for the final three innings and held the Starters to three scoreless innings. She had four strikeouts, five groundouts, and only one walk.