GM girls softball shuts down Mill River 21-2

By Evan Chadwick
© 2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC

The depth of a roster is always tested when X factors come into play. For the Green Mountain girls softball team, this X was vacation, as two starters were still away when Mill River came to Chester on a cold Tuesday night.

No worries. GM had an answer, as skipper Matt Wilson enlisted Riley Paul to start the game and she delivered a gem, pitching five innings of 2-hit softball en route to the Chieftains 21-2 victory.

“Riley did well,” said Wilson. “She is a team player and knew that she needed to step up.”

Despite giving up a walk and a hit batter, Paul worked through the first inning to keep Mill River off the scoreboard.

GM instantly gave their starting pitcher a cushion, as they erupted for 9 runs in the bottom of the frame. Kim Cummings opened the inning with a double down the third base line and would later score on a passed ball to take the early 1-0 lead.

Four walks and a hit by pitch added to the first inning surge that was eventually capped with an Abby Williams two run single that had the Chieftains firmly in command.

In the top of the second, Paul made quick work of the Minutemen lineup, striking out the side.

GM would add a run in the bottom of the inning that was courtesy of a double steal where Rebecca Ortego slid in under the Mill River tag to expand their lead to double digits at 10-0 after two innings.

The GM girls got a little sloppy defensively in the top of the third when two throwing errors led to the only runs Mill River would score in the contest. However, Paul would bear down and close out the inning thanks to some nifty glove work by Chloe Gregory, who snagged a line drive that had RBI written all over it when it left the bat.

“We have been struggling with errors,” said Wilson, who commented that his team had 17 of them in their narrow 18-15 loss to Poultney last week.

But GM left no doubt in this one in the bottom of the third, as they doubled their advantage, putting up 10 runs off of six hits, including RBI doubles from Paul, Cummings and Abby Williams.

Paul would keep Mill River scoreless the rest of the way, as the game was called after five innings, leveling Green Mountain’s record at 1-1.

“It was nice to see kids step up today who have had little or no experience,” said Wilson, who pointed out left fielder Teagan Sheehan, who battled through a broken nose in their opening game and contributed significantly from her position in left-field. “She has a heart of gold.”

Kim Cummings led the offensive attack with four hits, including three doubles and five stolen bases. Williams added two hits and three RBIs.

The road gets tougher for the team, as they are next in action today when they travel to Proctor for a 4:30 p.m.  match up with the Phantoms, then host Leland and Gray on Saturday with the first pitch slated for 11 a.m.

“We are going to have to rely heavily on pitching and our returners to pull us through this stretch,” said Wilson.