Softball team breaks through

After starting the year with 16 consecutive losses the Berkeley Springs softball team got their first win of the year on Friday, April 16, in Moorefield.

After losing the first game in the Moorefield Tournament to Frankfort, the Indians got the elusive win by defeating the host team, Moorefield, 7-4.
Getting the proverbial monkey off their backs was welcome and Berkeley springs Coach Greg Brown expressed it quite simply.

"Finally, a win," said a relieved Brown.

The Indians were trailing 4-2 in the bottom of the third when they rallied for four runs and then added three more in the fifth for the three-run victory.

Lauren Hoffman started the third inning rally with a one-out single. After Skylar Krochinsky reached on an error, Toni Davison, Brooke Hessler, Alyssa Spielman and Katarina Napfel had consecutive base hits to give the Indians a 4-2 lead.

The Tribe added three insurance runs in the fifth.

A double by Davison, a single by Chelsea Hessler, two Moorefield errors and a walk gave the Indians a 7-2 lead, and Brooke Hessler did the rest to secure the much needed win.

"Brooke did a nice job on the mound," Brown said. “She wasn't getting a lot of close calls and the conditions weren't the greatest with the rain, but she stepped up and got our first win."

The Indians out hit the Yellow Jackets 8-4, with Davison going three for four, including a double and two runs scored, while Alyssa Spielman had a single, a double with two runs scored.

Brooke Hessler went the distance on the mound allowing four runs on four hits, striking 10 and walking seven.

Berkeley Springs dropped two games last week, prior to the win over Moorefield.

On Monday, April 12, the Indians fell to East Hardy, in Baker, 14-6.
One bad inning cost Berkeley Springs, according to Brown.
"If you just look at the scoreboard it looks like we really got outplayed in this game, but we really only had one bad inning, the fourth," said Brown. “All seven runs they scored in the inning were unearned and five of the seven came with two outs. We committed five of our nine errors in the fourth. They only had two hits and two base-on-balls and scored seven runs. We outplayed them in six of seven innings, so that is an improvement."

The Indians had just cut East Hardy's lead to a single run, 4-3, before the fourth inning collapse. The Indians did add a single run in the fifth and two more in the sixth, but it wouldn't be enough.

Brooke Hessler and Napfel had two hits each. Hessler scored a pair of runs and Napfel had two RBI.

Spielman pitched a complete game allowing 14 runs (many unearned) on 10 hits. She recorded three strikeouts and walked two batters.

The Indians opened the Moorefield Tournament with a 3-1 loss to Frankfort on Friday, April 16.

Spielman pitched an outstanding game, but was the hard-luck loser. She allowed just three runs (one earned) on four hits, striking out three and walking four. Unfortunately, the Indian offense produced only two hits, a single by Spielman and a double by Chelsea Hessler.

"We played a really good game," said Brown. “This is what high school softball is supposed to be. Low scoring, good defense, a handful of hits and done in an hour. We only had one error, but it did lead to two of the three Frankfort runs. I feel sorry for Alyssa, she has pitched some good games, has an earned run average around two, and can't get a win."
After picking up their first win of the year later on Friday, the Indians played another good game to open Saturday's action, but lost to Lewis County, 2-0.

Spielman had another solid outing on the mound, allowing only two runs on four hits. She struck out three and walked just one.
According to Brown, the Indians aren't getting much luck.
"The runner that scored the first run for Lewis County reached base on a dropped third strike and the second run came on a pick-off play. We had the runner picked off at third base by six feet, but the shortstop dropped the ball. That was two mistakes, two runs and another tough loss for Alyssa."

Other than a couple of costly mistakes, Brown was pleased with the effort and the way the Indians have played over the last several games.

"This was another solid game for us," Brown said. “In the last three games we've only committed four errors and allowed a total of nine runs; a great improvement. This game was just typical of our luck this year."

After playing three impressive games in a row, the Indians were looking forward to their showdown against Washington in the second game on Saturday.

Berkeley took a 2-0 lead in the top of the first, but the Patriots scored four times in the bottom half of the inning and went on to beat the Indians, 13-2, in five innings.

"I was shocked by this game," said a disappointed Brown. I honestly thought, as good as we've been playing and the fact that Washington had ‘mercied’ us twice earlier in the year, that we would get revenge. There were a couple of bad attitudes that just brought our whole team down. After the game, I made a promise to the girls who really want to play that I need to concentrate more on them. So far this year I've spent a majority of my time trying to fix bad attitudes and work ethics. I have finally realized that I can't. All of my attention from here on out will be focused on who really wants to be here and I know who they are and they will play. I can't let a couple influence the whole group. If you have a good attitude, you're going to get some playing time."

The Berkeley Springs junior varsity lost to East Hardy, 17-1, on April 12. Courtney Baxter and Courtney Smith had the two Indian hits.

Berkeley Springs, (1-18), plays at St. Maria Goretti today and will host Hampshire and Frankfort in double-headers on April 23 and 24, respectively.