Sunday
Brakettes Sweep Final Doubleheader of the Season

Aug 1 - By Connor Pignatello - Jana Sanden hit a two-run homer in a Stratford 2-1 win over the Connecticut Impact in the first game of the last doubleheader of the regular season. In the second game, Sarah Lawton struck out 16 as the Brakettes won 3-0.

Just like last night against the Eliminators, the Brakettes jumped on opposing pitching early. Val Suto led off the game with a single and Jana Sanden drove her home with a two-run shot to deep right-center field. Sanden also hit a two-run homer last night. She said she’s been working on adjusting her timing.

“I’ve been off a little bit but I was just working on simplifying it -- see the ball hit the ball basically,” said Sanden.

The Impact were playing for the first time in a month and only managed three hits off Ali DuBois, who was perfect through four innings.

To lead off the fifth inning, Impact catcher Ira Boci singled up the middle to break up the perfect game. Sage Borkowski reached on an error, and Marissa Dwyer grounded out to second base to drive in Connecticut’s only run. The next batter Molly Adamo hit a two-out single to right field, but Rebecca Johnson gunned Borkowski down at home trying to score from second to end the inning.

The Brakettes scattered 10 hits, but failed to score any runs after Sanden’s first inning homer. Stratford loaded the bases with one out in both the fifth and the sixth but failed to score either time. In the sixth, former Brakette Gretchen Bunovsky and Abby Adinolfi both made diving catches in the outfield to prevent the Brakettes from scoring.

The Brakettes improved their record in one-run games to 4-1.

Unlike the first game of the day, the Brakette bats were silent in the early innings of the second game. Impact pitcher Sage Borkowski only allowed two hits through her first four innings of work.

But Sarah Lawton was just as good. In seven innings, she struck out sixteen and allowed just a pair of hits in a scoreless outing.

Stratford finally broke the scoreless tie in the fifth inning thanks to a home run from Rebecca Findley. In the sixth, Stratford tacked on two more insurance runs thanks to RBI hits from Kaitlyn Flood and Gillian Birk.

The Brakettes finish the regular season with a 36-2 record. The 13th annual Women’s Major Softball Tournament begins on Wednesday August 4th.