Published August 27, 2020
NORTH READING — After dropping two straight games to Cape Ann League opponents, the North Reading softball team avenged their earlier loss to Pentucket with a 16-3 win.
The Hornets collected 14 hits including seven extra base hits while limiting Pentucket to just four hits without committing an error defensively.
Senior co-captain Elli DeCleene scored twice from her leadoff spot and finished the season with a .400 batting average. Juniors Julia Howse (.560 BA) and Sarah Gerber (.571 BA) continued to lead the offense with Gerber smashing her 6th home run of the summer in this final contest. Senior co-captain Emma Lord finished the summer hitting .438 and played flawlessly at first base.
North Reading got timely hitting from Adriana Vittozzi who added a 3-for-3 performance including a double and two RBI’s. Rising freshman Kristen Galvin (.538 BA) notched a single, a double and scored a run. Senior Julia DiNapoli and sophomores Gina Mulik and Abby Gerber added to their totals each collecting hits with Gerber knocking in two runs with a 4th inning triple.
Rising freshman pitcher Keely Hannon went the distance for North Reading in the circle. Hannon pitched all seven innings to secure the victory allowing three runs and four hits while striking out seven Sachem hitters. Hannon helped her own cause going 1-for-2 at the plate and scoring a run.
North Reading finished the season at 5-4 with their final game against Essex Tech rained out on Wednesday. They’ll look to build on this momentum heading into a fall softball season with high hopes for a CAL title run next spring.