The clock strikes midnight for Swampscott softball

LOWELL – Swampscott?s Cinderella run through the Division 2 North tournament came to an end with a 5-0 loss to Reading in the Division 2 North final Sunday at Martin Field.
The Big Blue won three times in tourney play and finished the season with a 16-10 record.
Against top-seeded Reading, Swampscott got solid pitching and defense, but couldn?t get anything going against Reading?s star pitcher, Michaela Reeves, who retired the first 14 batters she faced. The senior kept Swampscott hitters off balance all game, tossing a complete game and giving up only two hits while striking out eight. She also went 2-for-3 with a triple and an RBI at the plate.
Hannah Leahy took the loss for the Big Blue, going 4 ? innings and giving up three runs on four hits. Sam Rizzo went the final 1 ? innings, giving up two runs on two hits.
Reading struck first in the bottom of the first inning. The Rockets loaded the bases with one out and capitalized with two runs on a passed ball and a groundout.
The score remained at 2-0 for the next three innings. Leahy settled down and had a one-two-three second, but the Rockets threatened again in the third. After getting runners on second and third with one out, Reading?s Carly Mello lined a bullet in the hole at shortstop. Swampscott?s Riley Lord played it perfectly and snagged it, then gunned the ball to double up the runner at third and get the Big Blue out of the inning.
But Swampscott couldn?t do anything with the bats. Olivia Capone got the first hit off Reeves in the fifth inning, and Alana Burke followed with another single. But Reeves worked out of the jam and didn?t allow another baserunner.
The Rockets grabbed another run in the fourth on a sacrifice fly to make it 3-0. They broke the game open with a two-run triple from Stephanie Ghostlaw to make it 5-0.
Reeves did the rest, as she retired the final seven batters in a row to seal the win for Reading.Mike Alongi can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter at @m_alongi.