Swampscott LL softball beats Wyoma

SWAMPSCOTT – The Swampscott Little League softball team kept its tournament lives afloat Friday evening, defeating visiting Wyoma, 14-13, in a game with mutual do-or-die circumstances.View Photo GalleryThe contest featured six lead changes and 19 walked batters.”It was a nail-biter for sure,” said manager Randy Hawkins whose squad advances to play the winner of today’s Salem/East Lynn on Sunday evening (5:30).A six-run fourth proved the difference for the hosts who sent 10 batters to the plate, including Jill Flanders whose two-out, bases clearing triple gave Swampscott a 10-9 lead.”Jill put together a fantastic at bat and delivered the big hit for us,” said Hawkins. “We moved her up in the box a bit to help time the pitcher and she really got a hold of it.”Flanders’ game-changer came shortly after a RBI single from Alexa Papazoglou(2 for 4, 2 RBI, 2 runs) and preceded a pair of wild pitches that allowed herself and Caleigh Hopkins (walk) to score.After the teams exchanged two runs apiece in the following frame, the visitors opened the top of the sixth with a surge of energy.Consecutive doubles to right field from Emma Fringuelli (3 for 4, 2 RBI, 3 runs) and McKenzie Shea (3 for 4, 3 RBI), the latter scoring the former, cut the deficit to two before Kaitlyn O’Neil walked and Shea came around on a wild pitch.Swampscott pitcher Hester Murphy responded by inducing Jillian Brown and Jenna Tobin into identical fielders’ choice groundouts to Olivia Charvez at the hot corner.With O’Neil on third, Murphy snared a sharp ground ball, off the bat of Katherine Clancy before her throw to third sealed the win.”We’re a young team with seven 11-year olds and we were coming off a couple of tough loss to Saugus. We needed a much better effort tonight and we did just that,” Hawkins said.Murphy went the distance for the victors while Carly Mendonca (two-plus innings) and Tobin split time in the circle for the visitors.Wyoma took early leads of 1-0 and 3-1 in the first two innings respectively, only to see the hosts respond a half inning later.Tobin (2 for 5, 2 runs) led off the game with a single just inside the third base bag before eventually scoring on a wild pitch. Charvez followed a similar route to knot things, drawing the first of three free passes before scoring on a pitch that reached the backstop.Fringuelli and O’Neil each recorded singles and runs in the second, the latter coming across on an infield single to third from Clancy.Once more, Swampscott had the answer, breaking out for four runs in the bottom of the frame, helped along by six Mendonca walks.Fringuelli (fielders’ choice) and Shea (double) added RBIs in the Wyoma third making it 5-5 before Bianna Pierce groundout plated Mia Freddo, restoring the host’s lead.The visitors added what proved to be some faulty insurance in its half of the fourth.Tobin singled and scored on a sacrifice fly to shallow center by Mendonca before Fringuelli plated Amanda Wilkins (fielders’ choice) with a single to third. Shea followed with a two-run double to left.