Awesome infielding by Lindsey Maroney ’07 increased the record of the Andover Varsity Softball Team to 7-3 in a great 2-1 defeat over BB&N last Wednesday. Extraordinarily strong and effective infield execution backed up pitcher Claire Fox ’06 as Andover capitalized on errors and came together as an effective unit both offensively and defensively. The team came blasting out onto the field with an amazing first inning, holding BB&N’s batters and scoring its two runs right off the bat. After two outs, Maroney’s bat came alive as she got on base with an infield hit. Following Maroney, first basemen Amy Prosper ’06 reached on a fielder’s choice, landing runners on first and second base, putting immense pressure on the opposing team early on. Capitalizing on BB&N’s shaky defense, catcher Megan Winn ’05 scored Maroney, giving Andover a 1-0 lead. Again, Andover was able to make use of the opposition’s mistakes as Prosper scored Andover’s second run due to an attempt at a pitch-off, making the score 2-0. The remaining innings of the game were quieted by Andover’s relentless infield defense. Although Andover was unable to score any more runs, the team allowed only one run from the opposition. Fox’s consistent pitching silenced the nervous BB&N’s batters, as she successful struck out six hitters, allowing only three hits out of the challenging rivals and walking only one fortunate batter. It was truly a collaborative effort out on Isham field, as Andover’s infield put on an amazing show. Second basemen Captain Melissa Tetreau ’06 succeeded in three assists, keeping BB&N runners from getting on base. Although Andover was unable to bat in any more runs after the intense start of the game, great hitting was shown by many players throughout. Katie Koh ’05 stepped up to the plate, with a great batting record of two for three. Maroney came through offensively, successfully reaching base two for two. The combination of great pitching and Andover’s plentiful infield outs awarded the team another win against a tough competitor.
