2017 SLC SOFTBALL TEAM MAKE THE ELITE 8 BEATING TI AT POTSDAM ST.

The St. Lawrence Central softball team hit a post-season bullseye on Thursday.
“We knew coming in that we had a target on us after what happened last year in this game. We read the papers and they came in feeling like they were the underdog, that they had nothing to lose and that they wanted some revenge,” said Ticonderoga coach Eric Mullen after the Section 10 champion Lady Larries claimed a 5-3 decision over his squad in the opening round of the NYSPHSAA Class C playoffs at the SUNY Potsdam diamond.
“They got great pitching. They played solid defense when they needed to and they hit the ball well. That’s usually a winning combination,” he added.
Providing the great pitching was sophomore Makiah Ramsdell, who survived a late-inning team letdown to hurl a complete-game two-hitter and gain her own measure of redemption.
“The (Section 10) Class C game was the one we knew we had to win to move on but this was the game that we really wanted,” said Ramsdell, who struckout the side to open the game and finished with 13K’s, walked just one and survived five team errors en route to helping SLC erase the disappointment of last’s year lopsided loss to the Sentinels.
“We knew we were going to have to play our best game. It got a little scary toward the end but I had a lot of confidence in my teammates,” she added. “It just feels amazing right now.”
With the win, the Lady Larries advanced to a quarter-final round matchup against Section 2 champion Greenville on Saturday at Moreau Park in South Glens Falls starting at 4 p.m.
“We came out swinging the bats and hitting the ball hard then we battled and scrapped through the late innings. We came into the game wanting to play another day and now we got a game against Greenville to get ready for,” said SLC coach Tim Brown after his squad improved to 15-5.
“Kiah pitched very well today. They got to her the one inning but she got some big outs and we made some big plays behind her. It was a team effort,” he added.
The Lady Larries set the tone for their win in the first inning. After Ramsdell quieted the Ticonderoga bats, junior Sydney Collins led-off the bottom half with a long single to right-center. A single by senior Bailee Gauthier and a walked to sophomore Kelsy Waite later, senior Riley Barton drilled an RBI-single to left. Two batters later, senior Hailie Weegar singled home Gauthier and sophomore Leah Francis followed with a single to left that brought home Waite with the third run as the Lady Larries went on to send nine batters to the plate.
SLC generated its fourth run in the bottom of the second where Gauthier grounded a one-out single up the middle then scored in front of a long double to rightcenter by Waite. The Lady Larries then pushed their lead to 5-0 in the fifth where senior Gabby Ramsdell stroked a one-out single down the firstbase line. She was replaced by pinch-runner Marissa Kelley, who advanced to second on a perfectly placed bunt single by Weegar then onto third on a wild pitch before beating a throw home when Francis grounded into a fielder’s choice.
Ramsdell saw her perfect game end in the top of the fifth where back-to-back errors followed a strikeout but the Sentinels stranded both baserunners.
Then, after a third SLC error to lead off the sixth inning, the Ticonderoga bats came to life as Haleigh Wright launched an RBI-double to base of the fence in left center. After a strikeout, Carly Campney singled home the second run. Alyssa Tucker came on as a pinch-runner and promptly stole secondbase then darted to thirdbase on a throwing error before scoring in front of a long sacrifice fly by Emily Pike. Ramsdell settled down to strikeout the next batter to end the threat then opened the top of the seventh by fanning the first two batters before the Sentinels kept the game going on the final SLC error. The game ended when Waite stepped out from behind the plate to snare a sinking foul ball down the firstbase side and seal the win.
“We knew they’re pitcher from having faced her last year but she has clearly gotten better,” noted Mullen after his team was denied a second straight trip to the state semifinals.
Cyley Quigley, one of nine seniors on the Ticonderoga roster this spring fanned three and walked one in taking the loss.
Gauthier had three of the 11 hits in the winning effort while Waite was 2-3 with a double.