Click here for a Photo Gallery from King Philip vs. Milton baseball at Polar Park, 6-16-23.
Tag: King Philip
King Philip Falls Short In Final Against Top Seed Milton
WORCESTER, Mass. – It was like déjà vu. For the second season in a row, King Philip was able to push through the gauntlet of the Div. 2 tournament, winning its last three games by two runs or fewer, and reached the state title game. But, standing in the way of a trophy was top seed Milton.
A new season and a new venue, but the result was the same.
The defending state champion Wildcats scored three times in the third inning and tacked on two insurance runs in the sixth to pull out a 6-2 victory at Polar Park.
“I thought we were pretty locked in,” KP coach Jeff Plympton, Jr. explained. “We were excited to be back and to play in a venue like this is awesome. The guys were super pumped.
“It didn’t go our way. We’re playing one of the better teams in our division….it happens. I’m super proud of these guys.”
Although KP was disappointed to be leaving with runners up medals for the second year in a row, to be able to reach the final stage in back-to-back seasons is an impressive accomplishment in its own right.
“Absolutely, it’s not an easy thing,” Plympton, Jr. said. “I think that the schedule that we play, playing in the Hockomock League, helps us get back. Moving up to Div. 1 next year isn’t an easy thing, but we’re looking forward to the challenge.”
KP got off to a great start. Max Robison led off the game by ripping a single up the middle against Milton ace Owen McHugh, who responded by striking out the next two batters. With two down, Drew Herlin lined a single to center. Tommy Martorano followed by knocking a base hit into left and bringing in the game’s opening run.
Milton tried to answer right back in the bottom half of the inning. McHugh drew a leadoff walk against KP starter Rudy Gately and stole second. Brendan Sencaj made a nice play to cut off a bouncer between third and short. After a fly ball to center that moved McHugh to third, Gately closed out the first with a strikeout.
Gately started the second with a single to right and, after another McHugh strikeout, Cam Hasenfus reached on an error. McHugh didn’t allow the Warriors to build additional momentum by striking out a pair and ending the threat.
With two outs in the bottom of the second, Ryan Kelly beat out an infield single that went off the glove of Robison’s dive at first. Tommy McLeish ended any rally by making a nice diving grab on a sinking liner at short.
Matthew Kelley had a single in the third, but KP weren’t able to get anything going against McHugh. In the bottom half, Milton grabbed control of the final.
Harrison Hinckle, MIlton’s No. 9 hitter, started things by ripping a double into left center. McHugh followed with a single and then stole second. Jimmy Fallon walked to load the bases and Scott Longo drew a free pass to tie the game. A grounder to McLeish got the runner at second, but a throwing error would allow two runners to come home.
Gately got a grounder and a strikeout to limit the damage, but Milton led 3-1. He then reached on an error in the fourth, but was caught in a rundown trying to take third on a grounder to short. Milton went around the horn on a double play to end the inning.
Things looked comfortable in the bottom of the fourth after two quick outs, but the Wildcats rallied. Hinckle again got things going with a single and then stole second. McHugh turned on an 0-2 pitch and pushed the lead to 4-1.
Robison got a leadoff walk in the fifth, but McHugh ripped off three straight strikeouts. Martorano took over on the hill for the Warriors. A one-out error put a runner in scoring position, but he bounced back with a couple of strikeouts.
KP kept battling and had an opportunity to get into the game in the sixth. With one out, Aidan Astorino drew a walk. Gately reached for the third time, dropping a single into shallow left. McLeish went the other way, knocking a hit between first and second to score Astorino. A wild pitch allowed McLeish to put the tying run at second.
McHugh struck out his 11th batter of the night to put the Wildcats on the edge of escaping the jam. With Robison coming up, Milton turned to lefty Tommy Mitchell out of the pen. A 2-2 pitch got away from catcher Jack Finnegan and Gately tried to take advantage. Although Gately got a good jump, Finnegan pounced quickly and made a perfect toss to Mitchell to get the out at the plate.
Plympton, Jr. said, “It’s tough to get runs and we were at the heart of our lineup and I trust Rudy to make decisions. I support him on that. I thought he got a decent jump and they made a great play. We’re looking to get runs and I can’t fault him for being aggressive.”
The Warriors were only down two, but momentum was fully with Milton. With one out in the bottom of the sixth, Jack Sullivan singled to right and stole second. After Hinckle drew a walk to reach base for the third time, a wild pitch moved both into scoring position. Milton continued to make those situations count. Following a strikeout, Fallon lined a single to left to score one.
Fallon appeared to slip while taking his lead with the intention of drawing a throw over. Once Martorano went to first, Hinckle broke for the plate. The throw home got away allowing the second run to score, but Leo Dowling was able to recover and throw out Fallon, who attempted to go first to third on the play.
Mitchell sealed the win for Milton. He got a groundout and a pair of strikeouts before being surrounded by his teammates on the mound, celebrating a second consecutive state title.
“McHugh is an awesome pitcher and Mitchell coming in is like us bringing in Martorano, so we knew they had velocity and I was happy how we responded in that first inning putting a run up,” Plympton, Jr. said. “We went a little flat there and were threatening there at the end but just couldn’t get the hit that we needed.”
King Philip finished the year at 17-8.
Softball Photos: King Philip vs. Taunton
Taunton Edges King Philip and Will Play for a Three-Peat
DARTMOUTH, Mass. – One of the things that has made Taunton a perennial state title contender is its depth. There are no weak links. Even when you shut down the stars, the players that regularly steal the headlines, someone else is there to deliver the big hit or make the big play in the field.
That was on display again Thursday afternoon at UMass Dartmouth. Facing its biggest rival, in a state semifinal, Taunton’s ability to get contributions throughout the lineup proved decisive.
Hayley Krockta and Brooke Aldrich delivered the run-scoring hits, Sam Lincoln continued her stellar season in the circle, and freshman Mia Torres and eighth grader Bella Bourque made timely plays in the field, as Taunton pulled out a 2-0 win against King Philip (23-3) that decided the season series between the Kelley-Rex co-champs and sends Taunton to its third straight state title game.
“All our players are producing,” said Taunton coach Michelle Raposo. “Kids deeper in the lineup have produced a lot for us offensively. It means a lot that these kids, one through nine in the batting order, fight for each other. That’s what makes a team so great, the camaraderie here. I’m just so proud of this team.”
It’s not unusual for this rivalry to extend beyond the league campaign and the regular season. These teams have established themselves as among the most consistent programs in the state and produce teams and games worthy of a state title game, not just a semifinal.
“They’re my favorite game of the year,” said Krockta. “It’s probably the best softball we see in Massachusetts. It’s amazing to play them every year.”
KP coach Kate Fallon Comeau said, “This was a definitely a state title battle. Arguably two of the best teams in the state going head-to-head for the third time this season.”
Freshman McCoy Walsh got off to a shaky start in the top of the first. Having allowed only one run in the postseason so far, Walsh started the game with a strikeout but then walked Bourque and Ava Venturelli. Bourque attempted to steal third and appeared to beat Maddie Paschke’s throw only for Ava Kelley to stay with the eighth grader as she slid just past the bag. It was a big second out and Walsh escaped unscathed on a pop up wide of first.
Lincoln also had a tough start to the game. Sarah Cullen led off by lining a single into left. A one-out walk to Libby Walsh put two on, but Lincoln followed with her first strikeout of the day and then got a grounder to Bourque at third to end the inning.
The pitchers settled in after that first frame, turning the game into the expected low-scoring duel. Walsh fanned a pair of batters in the second and Lincoln struck out one and got a pair of grounders. Walsh was even better in the third, striking out the side. Lincoln got the first batter of the third looking and then induced a pair of grounders to second baseman Mia Fernandes to make it eight straight batters retired.
With one out in the fourth, Venturelli drew her second walk of the game. The Louisville-commit hit a pair of homers in the first meeting between the teams and missed the second, so it was no surprise to see the Warriors pitch carefully to the Taunton slugger.
Kaysie DeMoura, who was the hero with two homers in last year’s state semifinal against Methuen, dropped down a sac bunt, which Walsh showed great agility to field and turn into an out, moving the runner into scoring position with two outs. Krockta delivered. She looped a ball into shallow left that Charlotte Raymond nearly snagged on the slide but it dropped just in front for a hit.
“That’s all I was looking for,” Krockta said about her game-winning hit. “The first at-bat she had been working me in and out, so I wanted to drive that outside [pitch] but when she came on the inside I wanted it and just put the barrel on it as best I could and it thankfully fell in.”
The ball got away from Raymond, allowing Krockta to advance to second. Aldrich followed with a bloop hit of her own, finding space in shallow center. Krockta slid in just ahead of Cullen’s throw for a 2-0 advantage.
Lincoln made quick work of KP in the bottom half of the inning, helped by a nifty backhand stab by Fernandes at second.
“Sam’s really, really, really good,” Krockta said. “I love Sam in the circle, but also it’s the defense behind her. They had to help a lot too, so that’s always good to have. Being up 2-0 we just want to limit their base runners.”
Taunton had an opportunity to put the game away in the fifth. Case transfer Morgan Fitzgerald lined a leadoff single to center. Torres dropped down a perfect sac bunt and reached on a throwing error, which allowed both runners to get into scoring position with no outs. This was the chance to break things open, but Walsh locked in. The rookie struck out the next three batters to get out of the jam and keep KP within two.
Momentum was short-lived, as Lincoln struck out the side in the bottom of the inning. Aldrich smacked a two-out double off the wall in left in the sixth but Walsh came back with a strikeout.
“We gave up two kind of bloop singles and the hardest hit ball of the day didn’t result in anything,” Fallon Comeau said about Walsh. “It’s a tough pill to swallow. She threw a great game, just feel bad that we weren’t able to get any runs to back up that wonderful performance she had.”
Jordan Bennett gave KP life to start the sixth. She beat out an infield hit to leadoff the inning. Liv Petrillo dropped down a sac bunt to move Bennett into scoring position. After a strikeout, Libby Walsh lined a single to center. The throw to the plate forced Bennett to hold and allowed Walsh to advance to second. Not getting a run home was costly, as Lincoln struck out the next batter to keep the shutout.
The Tigers nearly added an insurance run in the seventh. Fitzgerald had her second hit of the game, a single into right, and moved to second on a Torres bunt. Kyleah Plumb also dropped down a bunt and McCoy Walsh hesitated allowing both runners to be safe.
Bourque hit a fly ball out to left, which looked like it might be deep enough to score the run. Raymond threw a dart to home and Fitzgerald’s slide took her past not only the tag, but also the plate. Paschke stayed with the runner and secured the out.
KP needed base runners and Kelley nearly provided one but Torres came flying in and made a nice grab on the sinking liner for the first out. A grounder to Bourque put the Tigers on the brink and Lincoln closed out the game with her 10th strikeout, sending Taunton flying off the bench and on its way back to Amherst for the state title game.
“For the whole season we stuck with the ‘take it one game at a time, one pitch, one inning’ and we just wanted to continue that for the entire season,” Krockta explained. “Ultimately, our goal was to get back to the state final, but we wanted to stay humble and stay with it the entire way.”
Raposo added, “Just because we’ve been there doesn’t mean we don’t want it again. I think we want it more having been there and knowing what it feels like. To be able to go back for a third time in a row is uncommon, so they need to realize that we’ve had a lot of success so far, but we need to produce for one more game.”
Taunton (23-1) will face No. 1 Central Catholic at UMass Amherst’s Sortino Field on Sunday at 12:00.
Softball Photos: King Philip vs. Bishop Feehan
King Philip Blanks Feehan To Earn Spot In D1 Final Four
PLAINVILLE, Mass. – Strong pitching, flawless defense, and timely hitting turned out to be the perfect recipe for success for the King Philip softball team on Sunday afternoon.
The second-seeded Warriors used all three in a Division 1 state quarterfinal showdown with #7 Bishop Feehan and it resulted in a 4-0 shutout win, completing a three-game season sweep of the Shamrocks and earning KP a berth in the state semifinals for the first time in 2016.
“We’re in the nitty-gritty right now,” said King Philip head coach Kate Fallon-Comeau. “This is the end [of the season], there’s only four teams left now. You need to put up that good defense and [have] timely hitting.
“They are always playing together and they are always supporting one another. It’s not always the same person that gets it done, it’s someone different each time.”
Senior Libby Walsh clubbed two home runs – a two-run shot in the fourth and a solo blast in the sixth – and sophomore Liv Petrillo added a solo shot in the sixth to pace the offense.
Freshman McCoy Walsh tossed a complete game shutout, scattering just two hits – a two-out single in the first and a leadoff single in the fifth – and issued just two walks. She worked around four hit batters to toss a complete game shutout win.
And maybe the biggest play of the game came in the top of the fifth. With the Warriors hanging onto a 2-0 lead, Feehan senior Trinidy Tavares had a lead-off single, and junior Sarah Dupre drew a two-out walk; a passed ball sent pushed the runners forward, putting the tying run at second.
A hard-hit grounder from sophomore Maddie Coupal looked destined to get through on the right side of the infield but Petrillo made a terrific diving play to her left and fired a toss from her knees, getting the runner at first – on a nice grab from junior Taylor Regan – for the third out and preventing a pair of runs from crossing.
“We kind of live to make those big plays,” said Libby Walsh. “[Petrillo’s] a shortstop playing second base and we’re very lucky to have such a great infield. I knew she had that play, I was kind of running off the field already.”
McCoy Walsh had to work around an early threat in the first inning after two reached with two outs after a hit by pitch and a single, but Walsh got the second of her 10 strikeouts to end the first. Tavares was hit by a pitch in the second but Walsh got a strikeout and catcher Maddie Paschke quickly fired to second and caught the runner for the third out.
“The defense today…I’m just so proud of them,” Fallon-Comeau said. “That diving play that Liv makes, throws her out by a half step at first. I think the outfield made all of their catches. They were solid today and had McCoy’s back. [Bishop Feehan] fouled off a lot of pitches, they had some great at-bats but McCoy battled through every at-bat right up to the end.”
Meanwhile, Feehan starter Mylee Ramer had kept KPs bats quiet for the first three innings. She retired the side in order on strikes, set the Warriors down in order in the second, and got three straight outs in the third with the help of left fielder Breslin Findlen, who made a terrific catch at the fence in left to take away a hit from KP junior Jordan Bennett.
Freshman Ali Gill was KP’s first base runner of the game when she was hit by a pitch in the bottom of the fourth. After falling behind 0-2, Libby Walsh smashed an off-speed pitch deep over the fence in left-center for a two-run home run, giving the Warriors a 2-0 edge.
KP had a chance to add some insurance in the fifth inning but left two on base. Paschke had a single to left and Regan followed with a single to center, but Ramer got a big strikeout and induced a pair of popups to escape further damage.
In the bottom of the sixth, Walsh got ahold of another one and sent a high fly ball over the fence in center field to extend the lead to 3-0. Ramer got two outs but Petrillo drilled the first pitch she saw to right center to make it 4-0.
“They’ve been up for every single game and all of them have been very competitive,” Fallon-Comeau said. “We couldn’t ask for better competition throughout the tournament, and it’s only going to get tougher from here.”
The Shamrocks put a runner on with two outs in the top of the seventh but McCoy Walsh put an end to the game with her 10th strikeout to secure the win.
The win sets up a Division 1 state semifinal matchup with Hockomock League rival Taunton. The Warriors and Tigers split the regular season, each team winning at home. The two state powerhouses will face off at 5:00 on Wednesday at UMass Dartmouth.
Baseball Photos: King Philip vs. North Attleboro
King Philip Squeezes Out Extra Innings Win Over North
WRENTHAM, Mass. – When the game started, there was some concern about smoke and rain, but three hours and 11 innings later, light was starting to become an issue at Lombard Field. Wednesday afternoon’s Div. 2 Sweet Sixteen matchup between league rivals North Attleboro and King Philip turned into a marathon.
In the bottom of the 11th, KP was at the plate with its fifth chance to walk off with the win. For the third time in those five innings, KP had the bases loaded and the winning run just 90 feet away. KP coach Jeff Plympton, Jr. decided it was the perfect opportunity to try something different.
With one out, Rudy Gately surprised the North defense by squaring around and pushing a bunt towards the second baseman. The safety squeeze made it just past the mound, North had no play at the plate, and the Warriors celebrated a 4-3 victory and a return to the D2 quarterfinal.
Plympton, Jr. said, “I thought we had a few too many mental errors to win that game and, you know, our pitching kept us in it and gave us that opportunity to finish it off. Rudy is an excellent bunter and I knew that he’d get it down and that he’d get it down far enough that he’d get in.”
Asked what he was looking for in that at-bat, Gately replied, “Just bunting there, a little safety squeeze, just get it in play so we can score. That’s all I needed to do. Struggling at the plate, I think half my hits are bunts right now, so stick with it.”
North Attleboro (8-14) came into the playoffs as the No. 19 seed and went on the road to upset No. 14 Duxbury in the first round. Head coach Mike Hart was proud of the way his team battled one of the favorites for the state title and a team had already beaten the Rocketeers twice this season.
“The last two weeks of practice have been phenomenal,” Hart explained. “KP’s a great team, we knew they were going to fight, and we were ready for it. This caliber of kids is fantastic. Seeing it all come together over the last two games, over the last two weeks of practice, it’s been a fun time.”
Way back in the top of the first, it was North that jumped in front. With two outs, Derek Maceda drew a walk. He stole second and then stole third as well, with the throw getting away into left field to allow him to come home and make it 1-0.
The lead was short-lived. In the bottom half, Matthew Kelley beat out a two-out, infield single to short. Drew Herlin singled to center and the ball was misplayed, allowing Kelley to come all the way around from first and tie things up. Jordan Paradis would make a nice grab on a long fly by Aiden Astorino to end the inning.
In the third, Paradis led off with a single and, with one out, Maceda lined a single to center. He would steal second to put two in scoring position. Cam Hasenfus threw a nasty fastball on the corner to strike out fellow sophomore Gio Martello and then got a high chopper to Brendan Sencaj at third to escape the jam.
KP grabbed the lead in the bottom of the inning. Sencaj drew a one-out walk and Kelley crushed a ball that one-hopped the right field fence for a run-scoring triple. Herlin came through with his second hit of the day to bring in Kelley. Dillon Harding gave up a double to Tommy Martorano but Martello made an excellent play on a ball that tipped off Harding’s glove and then the pitcher got a comebacker to end the threat.
It stayed 3-1 until the fifth inning. Paradis led off with a walk and stole second. Hasenfus got a strikeout for the first out, but Maceda smashed a ball over the fence in right for a game-tying homer that sent the North bench (and Hart in the third-base coach’s box) leaping towards the plate in jubilation.
After Martello singled and stole second, sophomore Nate Pennini came in for KP and got a grounder to second and a strikeout to keep the game tied.
The home team’s first chance to win it came in the seventh. Sencaj singled and Kelley followed with a grounder, but North couldn’t get the force at second. After a grounder moved the runners up, Martorano was intentionally walked to load the bases. Martello had another nice play, cutting down the potential winning run at the plate and a bouncer to short ended the inning.
KP had another golden opportunity to win it in the eighth. With two outs, Max Robison hustled to beat out an infield hit. Sencaj lined a double just inside the line in right, putting two in scoring position. Again North intentionally loaded the bases, this time giving Kelley the free pass, and Maceda came in to relieve Harding (7-2/3 innings, two earned runs).
Maceda got Herlin to fly out to left and the game continued on.
“Dillon and Derek have been our horses on the mound,” said Hart. “It was getting close, Dillon’s pitch count was getting up, but there was nobody we were going to put there in that spot. He puts the team on his back, he’s so mentally tough, the situation is never too big for him.”
Both teams had base runners in the ninth, but Leo Dowling threw out Chris Hanewich trying to steal second and Maceda got a strikeout after Gately’s infield single.
North’s best chance to go in front came in the 10th. Pennini walked Harding and Maceda to start the inning, but Sencaj handled a tough grounder and got the lead runner at third for the first out. Pennini (5-2/3 innings, no runs, seven strikeouts) then bore down, striking out the next two hitters to get out of the inning without any damage.
Maceda allowed a leadoff walk in the bottom half, but Nate Kelly threw out Tommy McLeish stealing second. It was the second runner Kelly threw out in extra innings. Martorano came in to pitch the top of the 11th and set North down in order, with a little help from Dowling who made a couple of excellent plays on popped up bunts around the plate.
“Two sophomores, Hasenfus and Pennini, got us the majority of the innings and having Martorano back being able to come in and chuck, he throws hard and got us that last inning that we needed,” said Plympton, Jr.
As the light was starting to dim and there was concern creeping in about how much more baseball could be played on Wednesday, Kelley sparked the Warriors with another infield single. Hanewich made a great running grab on a Herlin ball in the gap, hanging onto it despite a nasty collision with Paradis. Martorano added another infield hit and Astorino was intentionally walked to load the bases.
That brought up Gately with the chance to be a hero. It wasn’t a blast to the gap that would decide the game, but a well-executed bunt, put in just the right spot.
“It’s always hard playing a rivalry team three times in a year,” Gately said. “No matter what the records are, it can always go both ways.” He continued, “It was definitely a long game. We haven’t played a game that long all year. It’s difficult to stay in it, especially all the ups and downs, but we stayed focused in at the end to get the win.”
“We’ve been in tight games, but there’s nothing like this throughout the season,” Plympton, Jr. said. “It’s good to show to the team that we can win these type of games and it’s only going to get harder down the stretch trying to make a good run.”
King Philip (15-7) will host No. 6 Westwood on Saturday afternoon at 2:00 with a spot in the D2 Final Four on the line.
Softball Photos: King Philip vs. Needham
Walsh and Defense Carry KP into Sweet Sixteen
PLAINVILLE, Mass. – King Philip was in a groove at the end of the regular season. Although the final game was an extra innings loss to Bridgewater-Raynham, the Warriors had won the previous 10, including a title-clinching victory over Taunton, with eight shutouts.
It is hard to carry momentum into the playoffs when you’ve been waiting 10 days between games.
On Tuesday afternoon at the PAL Fields, KP showed more than a little rust at the plate, but got another stellar pitching performance from freshman McCoy Walsh, allowing two hits and one run while striking out 15, and a couple of solid plays in the field to put away No. 31 Needham and advance to the Div. 1 Sweet Sixteen.
“We do some live pitching obviously at practice for BP and stuff and we do soft toss but there is that game situation piece that you are kind of missing,” KP coach Kate Fallon-Comeau admitted. “We did do postseason scrimmages but you don’t know when you’re going to play and you don’t want to schedule too many and it turned out we sat for quite a while.”
While the KP bats may need a game to warm up, Walsh looked ready to go right from the start. She struck out 10 of the first 11 batters that she faced. Needham hit a fly ball to left to start the second and then got its first hit with two outs in the fourth on a single by Kelsey Pittman. Walsh got Maddie Baker to ground out to second to end the inning.
“It was a little frustrating not to be able to get those insurance runs and you’re used to having that little cushion, but I thought McCoy did great in the circle,” Fallon-Comeau said. “She really stepped up for us.”
The Warriors wasted no time getting in front but wasted a chance to break the game open. Sarah Cullen led off with a single to right and stole second. With one out, Cullen came in to score on a base hit to right by Libby Walsh. Charlotte Raymond followed with a single and the two advanced on a pitch in the dirt.
Ava Kelley reached on a fielder’s choice to the third baseman, who tried to draw Walsh off the bag before throwing across the diamond. Amanda Ferreira got a strikeout and a comebacker to get herself out of the jam.
In the second, Taylor Regan’s long fly to right center found the grass and ended up as a leadoff triple. Again, Ferreira was able to bear down with a runner in scoring position, getting a grounder to second and a hard hit liner right at the shortstop. Freshman Ali Gill came through with two outs, singling to left to make sure KP got the run home for a 2-0 lead.
KP continued to get base runners without looking particularly comfortable or dangerous at the plate. Kelley beat out an infield single in the third but was caught stealing. The following inning, Jordan Bennett was aggressive with two outs, turning a hit in shallow left into a double, but a grounder to second ended the inning.
Fallon-Comeau said, “We were just missing it, hitting it right at people. Kudos to the Needham pitcher, she pitched herself a great game today.”
With two outs in the fifth, KP put together a little two-out rally. Raymond dropped a single into right and then Kelley hustled to get an infield hit, but again Ferreira escaped as Liv Petrillo made solid contact but her deep fly to center stayed in the park.
The Warriors weren’t helping out Walsh offensively, but they were flashing the leather. Raymond made a nice running grab in left center to end the fifth, Walsh helped herself with a diving snag of a popped up bunt in front of home plate with a runner on in the sixth, and Gill tracked a long fly ball to just in front of the warning track to end that inning.
KP added an important insurance run in the sixth. Maddie Paschke ripped one past the shortstop for a leadoff hit. With Ava Lanza in as a courtesy runner for the catcher, she moved to second on a bouncer back to the mound. Bennett stung a liner right at the third baseman, whose attempt to double off Lanza ended up in right field.
With a runner at third, Cullen hit a roller up the first base line that wasn’t fielded cleanly and allowed the run to score.
As the rain rolled in and the temperature dropped, Gill made another great grab to start the seventh, snaring a sinking liner to right. The next batter, Baker, turned on a Walsh pitch and crushed it over the fence in left to cut the lead to two.
Fallon-Comeau explained, “I knew that kid could rake, and I thought whatever, 3-0 lead, seventh inning, throw to her because [McCoy’s] going to have to face good hitters like that a lot, and I think she kind of grooved one there for her and she put it well over the foul pole.”
There was no need to be too concerned about Walsh or the lead, as the rookie struck out the next two Needham hitters to close out the win and send KP to the next round.
“Hopefully we’ve dusted the cobwebs off a little bit and we’ll be ready to go tomorrow,” Fallon-Comeau said. “Not much time in between after sitting for so long, but it is what it is. It’s the playoffs, we’re just happy to be here and hopefully we can take care of business.”
King Philip (21-2) will have a quick turnaround, as the Warriors host No. 15 Chelmsford at the PAL Fields on Wednesday.