Quackenbush Strikes Out 16 In 2-1 Victory

by Gary Danforth
The good ones in any sport seem to get better as the contest goes on. Never was that more apparent than in Monday’s, May 11,  Hoosick Falls-Schuylerville varsity softball game. After seven innings the teams were deadlocked at 1-1 entering the first extra inning. All Panther freshman pitcher Rachel Quackenbush did was strike out the side in the Schuylerville top half of inning eight. It sent a powerful message to the Black Horses that they were going to have to earn any potential victory. In the first eight innings, the Queen of the Diamond struck out sixteen Horses batters to help keep her team in the game. But this Hoosick Falls team is by no means a one player contingent. Quackenbush’s teammates play sound defense, come up with some timely hits and are right with their pitcher on every throw to the plate.
For instance, in the first inning, Panther rightfielder Carly Morin made a nice running grab of a foul pop up. Then, a couple pitches later, Morin rifles a throw to second base to allow Panther shortstop Jenna Priore to apply a tag to a sliding Horses runner, stopping a Schuylerville scoring threat. In the seventh, with the score tied, Panther catcher Emily Cuik gunned down another Horses runner who was attempting to steal third base. There was Panther senior second baseman Carly Pine legging out an infield hit in the sixth inning. She eventually scored the tying run. There was Priore gunning throws to first base for long outs. There was Marissa Davendonis fighting off pitches in the Panther bottom half of inning nine until she finally punched a bloop single into right field. Finally, there was Morin punching another bloop single into right field, with two out, with the ball getting by the Horses’ right fielder and sending Davendonis, running on the pitch, home with the winning run as she was mobbed by her teammates. With many contributors, the Panthers had gotten another team win.
Schuylerville had two batters strike out and a ground ball out induced by Quackenbush to end the Horses first inning. HFCS had two quick ground outs before Quackenbush doubled in the first inning. A strike out ended the Panther first inning.
Schuylerville went down in order in inning two while the Horses’ pitcher, who struck out twelve Panthers on the day, got her second, third and fourth KO’s in inning two. Quackenbush got two strikeouts and fielded a tap back to the mound to finish off SCS in inning three. HFCS went down in order in inning three.
The Horses took a 1-0 lead in inning four. A strikeout and a tap back to the mound got two quick outs. But  an infield hit and a double to right field got Schuylerville’s only run home. In the Panthers’ fourth inning, Quackenbush doubled again, this time to centerfield, amidst two ground outs and a strikeout. In the Horses’ fifth inning, Quackenbush and company put the Horses away via a tap back to the mound and two more strikeouts. In the Panther fifth, two pop ups and a strikeout sent HFCS down.
Schuylerville had its side struck out in inning six amidst a harmless single to centerfield.
Hoosick Falls tied the game at 1-1 in inning six. Following a Panther strikeout, Pine legged out an infield hit. Priore blooped a single just over the first baseman’s head, with Pine chugging to third base on the play. Then, Quackenbush, adding to her two previous doubles on the day, hit a long fly ball into right field. It allowed Pine to tag at third base and beat a strong throw home. The game was tied at 1-1. A Panther strikeout ended the sixth inning.
A ground ball out, a single, a stolen base, Ciuk’s throw to third base to cut down the Horses’ base runner and Quackenbush’s thirteenth strikeout ended the Horses’ seventh inning. Kayla Brownell led off the HFCS seventh inning with a single to centerfield before two Panther strikeouts, a walk by Morin and a foul pop up to the Horses’ catcher sent Hoosick Falls down.
Then, Quackenbush struck out the side in the Horses’ eighth inning. A Panther pop up, a Priore single to right field, a ground ball out and a Katie Kovage line out to first base sent the game into inning nine. Schuylerville had their first at bat closed out when Pine scooted into right field foul territory from second base and snared a pop up. A bloop single to right field was erased when Ciuk gunned down the Horses’ runner who was attempting to steal second base. Priore corralled a Horses’ pop up to end the Horses’ ninth inning.
Then, HFCS scored the game winning two out run to end the game.
Roaming the Outfield: Once again the Panthers played another strong team, last week beating Class B Granville and Monday putting away Class B Schuylerville. Last week’s 3-1, six and one half inning Panther win against Granville took but one hour and ten minutes to play. This tough extra inning win against the Horses took one hour and forty minutes to play. Most softball games are over in less than 90 minutes, usually on beautiful Spring days like Monday.