Brakettes Win First Game of Bracket Play

August 5, 2011 - The Stratford Brakettes cruised past the New York City Havoc 12-0 in five innings on Friday night at DeLuca Field, taking their first contest of bracket play in the 3rd Annual Women's Major Softball National Championships in Stratford, CT.

The Brakettes were led by a stellar, one-hit performance by Brandice Balschmiter, who struck out eight and did not walk any batters. The only hit allowed by Balschmiter was a leadoff, bloop single behind second base by Nicole Adisano in the first inning.

Balschmiter improved to 22-0 on the season, while the Brakettes ran their record to 60-0 in 2011. Stratford has now won 116 games in a row, dating back to June 4, 2010.

The offense came early and often for the Brakettes, who plated four first-inning runs. Stratford was the visiting team on the scoreboard, as the Havoc won the pre-game coin-flip.

Carly Normandin led off with a single, and went from first to third on a bunt single by Ashley Waters. Denise Denis walked to load the bases for Stephanie Call, who also earned a walk. The base on balls gave the Brakettes a 1-0 lead, bringing Mandie Fishback to the plate with the bases still loaded.

Fishback roped a double to score both Waters and Denis, stretching the margin to 3-0, and pushing Call to third. Call then came home with the Brakettes’ fourth run on a grounder by Kristyn Sandberg.

After a rocky first frame, Havoc starter Alyson Chiaramonte kept the Brakettes off the board again until the fourth.

Amber Radomski and Kate Bowen reached on back-to-back singles in the fourth inning, putting Normandin at the plate with no outs. Normandin cranked a three-run shot to open the game up, giving Stratford a 7-0 lead.

Waters followed Normandin’s blast with a single, and then scored on a triple down the right-field line by Denis. Call contributed a single to bring in Denis, putting Stratford up 9-0. Call advanced to third on a pair of wild pitches, before crossing the plate on a sac fly by Carden for a 10-0 cushion.

The Brakettes added two more runs in the top of the fifth, fueled by Bowen’s leadoff double. Stacey Lajoie and Sara Plourde earned walks, giving Mariel Schlaefer a big opportunity with two outs.

Schlaefer steered a single through the left side to bring Bowen and Lajoie home, closing the tally at 12-0.

The Brakettes will take on the Lyons Spirit of Lyons, PA on Saturday afternoon in a winner’s bracket semi-final. The Spirit reached the matchup with a 4-3 win over the Connecticut Eliminators in Saturday night’s last contest.

On the other side of the winner’s bracket, the St. Louis Saints and New York Raiders advanced to the semi-finals. The Saints defeated the Connecticut Mirage 10-5, while the Raiders prevailed 9-0 over the Shoreline (CT) Sting to move on. The Saints and Raiders will play on Saturday afternoon at 3:00 for a berth in the winner’s bracket final against the Brakettes-Spirit winner.

All games at DeLuca Field in the 3rd Annual Women’s Major Softball National Championships are being live video webcast at brakettes.com.