Sarah Boylan ’09 made her first pitching appearance for Andover last Saturday and ended up being a success from the circle, tossing a full seven innings as Andover topped Middlesex, 8-4 at home. With Andover ace Michelle Hollebeke ’08 still unable to pitch due to a sore knee, Andover has relied upon pitchers Veda Eswarappa ’08 and Shannon McSweeney ‘11 since Hollebeke’s injury. Eswarappa was unable to attend the game on Saturday, however, so Boylan, usually the starting shortstop, stepped into the circle and pitched a complete game to get the job done against Middlesex. “The motion actually came back to me pretty easily, and I was able to hit my spots,” said Boylan. “I also knew that I had a solid defense behind me so I could just relax and get the ball into play.” McSweeney filled in at short for Boylan, and Riley Gardner ’10 took up third base for Andover. Alayna Garbarino ’10 and Emily Cokorinos ’08 were the only infielders in their normal starting positions, at second and first base, respectively. Andover showed its versatility in putting forth a terrific effort for the win, and proved the depth of the team. “The team as a whole has really had to come together defensively without Michelle pitching,” said starting center fielder Nicole Duddy ’08. “It really shows how the outcome of a game isn’t totally based on one player.” Hollebeke, despite her injury that prevented her from pitching, was key as a designated hitter in Andover’s lineup. She stroked a deep double to the outfield to score runners from second and third base. Andover’s next week is packed with four games, the last being against archrival Exeter.
