Brakettes Defeat RI Thunder Gold, Lyons Spirit

July 21, 2012 - After a first game victory in Saturday's 3-team triple header, winning 8-0 against the Lyons (PA) Spirit, the Rhode Island Thunder Gold brought their talents to bear against the Brakettes in Breast Cancer Awareness Night, with the home team wearing special pink shirts in support of finding a cure. Game 1 saw Megan Rico facing off against Brandice Balschmiter.

The Brakettes started off the offense in the bottom of the first. After walks to Ashley Waters and Denise Denis, Mandie Fishback hit a drive to deep left field, going off the fence for a 2-RBI double.

Another walk, this time to Carly Normandin in the 2nd, resulted in Stratford's third run as Alisa Heronema drove Carly in with a single to center after the speedster had stolen 2nd base.

Shannon Smith came in for the third inning in relief to give the Thunder pitching a new look and worked effectively in the 3rd. However, after a one out walk to Alisa Heronema in the 4th, Ashley Waters hit a deep shot to centerfield, clearing the fence by several feet for the 5-0 lead. Denise Denis then slammed a line drive to rightfield which went off the fence for a triple, but was stranded 60 feet from home.

Meanwhile, on the pitching front, Brandice Balschmiter was dominating the game, walking none, striking out 4 and allowing only an infield hit to Gianna Hathaway and a line drive to left field by Lindsay Mayer. Only one other ball left the infield as Brandice finished with a 2-hitter for her 28th win of the season.

It appeared that the Thunder might survive the 5th despite a leadoff walk to Becca Carden and a curveball hitting Normandin on the hip. Amber Radomski laid down a bunt to advance the runners into scoring position and then with two outs, Heronema singled in Carden. A pitch later, the Thunder tried to pick Carly off 3rd, but the throw went into left field, giving the Brakettes a 7-0 lead with Heronema moving to third. Ashley Waters then walked and the first pitch to Denis came in wide of the plate and went to the backstop, scoring Alisa for the final run.

The Brakettes finished the game with eight runs, but only five hits, as they received nine bases on balls and a hit batter allowing four of the five hits to drive in runs.

Game 2 saw LSU star Rachele Fico take to the circle to face off against a tough, veteran, Spirit lineup. University of Maryland graduate Liz Gall faced the Brakettes for the triple header finale.

The first inning proved a threat as Elaine Bedell hit a one out single to left field, followed by a shot from Courtney Hughes bouncing off the fence in center and putting runners on 2nd and 3rd with two outs. Fico retired the next batter on a fly to left to end the inning.

The Brakettes also threatened early, with Alisa Heronema and Ashley Waters singling, but Gall held, retiring the next eight batters to hold Stratford scoreless for the first two innings.

Finally, in the third, after retiring the first two hitters, Waters hit a shot just inside the foul pole for her ninth home run of the year. The fourth saw more offense when, after a rise ball hit Stephanie Call on the shoulder, Becca Carden went deep for home run number six on the season. Carly Normandin then singled, reaching second on a well-placed ground ball from Amber Radomski. Mariel Schlaefer then singled up the middle to score Normandin for the fourth run of the game.

Carden added some insurance runs in the fifth. Following singles by Waters and Call, Becca put the ball through the infield to drive in both runs. Gall avoided further damage finishing the 6th scoreless but with the score 6-0.

Rachele Fico meanwhile had dominated the game, retiring 16 of the last 17 batters she faced. However, Lock Haven University Division 2 standout Courtney Hughes delivered again, with a single. She reached second following Jenn Shellhammer's line drive hit. However, Fico nailed down the win, striking out the other 3 batters of the inning to finish with a five-hit shutout, walking none and adding 7 Ks. She is now 11-0 on the year.

The Brakettes finish off the weekend with a double header against the Lyons Spirit Sunday at 1pm, then go on the road for a week facing their toughest challenge of the year with the National Pro Fastpitch Akron Racers. They then travel out to Las Vegas, Nevada for the Fastpitch Championship Invitational in a 12 team tournament against the toughest teams in California. All games will be available through Brakettes.com.