The Westfield High softball team celebrate its Div .2 Championship after beating Tewksbury 3-1, Saturday at the University of Massachusetts. (Lowell Sun / Christopher Hurley)
AMHERST — Westfield pitcher Shea Hurley shook off some freshman jitters to throw six scoreless innings as the fourth-ranked Bombers softball team bumped off second-seeded Tewksbury 3-1 to win the Div. 2 state softball championship.
“It feels pretty awesome,” said Hurley, who dealt with a little wildness over the first few frames. “I was just trying to keep my focus. It’s crazy, I don’t really know what it was. I was just trying to settle in, maybe it was nerves. I don’t know.”
Hurley held a potent Tewksbury lineup to just five hits in seven innings of work, walking two and striking out five, surrendering just one earned run in the final frame.
“Our pitcher was great today and our defense behind her was phenomenal,” said Westfield coach Tyson James. “Shea was definitely nervous. She was throwing the ball high and just going too fast, but once she started slowing down she was fine.”
Westfield grabbed the early advantage in the first. Catcher Kenzi Raymond clubbed a clutch double, and headed home off an infield dribbler that was mishandled by Sam Ryan. It was the first of three errors the team committed.
The Bombers struck again in the second. Allie Rehor reached base on a dropped third strike, before scoring on another infield error. Ryan kept her composure, however, striking out the heart of the Westfield lineup, Carly James and Ali Lapoint, to escape the jam.
Raymond added to the Bombers’ lead in the third. The sweet-swinging backstop drilled a standup triple, before scoring off a Moja Premny single, increasing the lead to 3-0.
That was all they needed, as Hurley held the Indians at arms-length the rest of the way.
“I think the nerves got the best of us today,” said Tewksbury coach Brittany Souza. “We just gave them a little too much and in a championship game you can’t give a team three runs early to get comfortable.”
Members of the Tewksbury High softball team receive their MIAA runners-up medals following its 3-1 loss to Westfield in the Div. 2 championship game at UMass. (Lowell Sun / Christopher Hurley)