East Meadow Tops Massapequa Softball in Season Opener

The Massapequa Chiefs and East Meadow Jets kicked off their 2011 softball season aton Monday afternoon, with both teams figuring to contend for a Class AA-I title.

The Jets (1-0) came out on top behind solid pitching from junior Amanda Carlin and a four-run sixth inning to take down the Chiefs (0-1), 5-1.

Massapequa pitcher Kate Carmody started off strong, not allowing a hit in the first two innings. Following a single by Samantha Miller for the Jets, Jamie Laird knocked in the games’ first run with a single of her own to put the road team ahead 1-0 in the third.

The offensive struggles continued for the Chiefs as Carlin, who despite not recording a strikeout in her seven innings of work, was backed up by a solid defensive effort led by Miller and Nikki Giocastro.

With the game locked at 1-0 for East Meadow, they gave their lead a boost behind four consecutive hits off of Carmody in the sixth inning. Danielle Cutuli and Marissa San Antonio both hit RBI singles, along with an RBI double by Miller, who went 2-for-4 in the game. Cutuli came around to score on the double as well after an error by Massapequa catcher Monica Cupolongo.

Athena Soregcucli, who went 1-for-3, hit an RBI double in the bottom half of the inning for the Chiefs’ lone run of the game. The girls missed a potential opportunity to make things closer late in the game with the bases loaded and two outs, but Taylor Hein was declared out on a close call at first base following a ground ball.

In the bottom of the seventh, Carlin capped off the win with a quick inning, giving up just four total hits and a walk in the game.

Heroes: East Meadow pitcher Amanda Carlin did not overpower Massapequa in the opener, but did enough to hold the batters at bay mixed in with a solid defensive effort.

Turning Point: The big four-run sixth inning for the Jets pushed the lead to 5-0 with two innings remaining and put the Chiefs in a hole and little room to work with.

Quotable: “We are going to compete this year regardless,” Massapequa head coach Steve Donovan said. “We had a few miscues in the field here. We’ll have a few growing pains that were going to go through also.”

“It was a great win for us to come out against a really good team and start off well,” East Meadow head coach Cindy McCarthy said. “We have a young team, so to set the pace for the rest of the season from here is important.”

Bottom Line: The season is still very much in the opening stages, and both Massapequa and East Meadow will compete with the likes of Farmingdale and Mepham as the season progresses.

Key Stat: East Meadow collected 10 hits and drew four walks on the road compared to four and one for Massapequa.

Who’s Next: Massapequa @ MacArthur: March 30 at 4:30 pm; Syosset @ East Meadow: March 30 at 4:15 pm.

Box Score:        123    456    7     R   H    E

East Meadow   001   004   0  -  5   10   0

Massapequa     000   001   0  -  1    4    1