PEABODY — In a matchup between intercity rivals, the Bettencourt sisters made sure Peabody’s softball team left the field with bragging rights against Bishop Fenwick.
Both teams boasted quality pitching and strong offense, but Thursday afternoon, the Tanners got the better of the Crusaders 10-2.
To get things underway, Fenwick’s Mia Mercurio cleared the right-field fence for a two-run homer in the top of the first inning.
“That was a really good at-bat,” Fenwick coach Brian Seabury said. “She’s been hot as of late, so she got off to a good start.”
Abby Bettencourt answered in the bottom of the first with a lead-off homerun to left-center-field to cut the deficit to 2-1.
“To have Abby as your leadoff hitter, she sets the tone and it becomes contagious,” Peabody coach Tawny Palmieri said. “Some coaches may not have her [at] leadoff, but it works for us.”
Then, the theme of Bettencourts hitting home runs came alive, as her older sister, Isabel Bettencourt, powered a solo home run to give Peabody a 3-2 lead.
Seabury took his hat off to Peabody’s starpower.
“Obviously it was always going to be hard to hold off a top team in the state, but it was good for us to play them,” Seabury said.
All that said, the bats cooled as the two pitchers, Abby Bettencourt and Jaleila Aupont, battled. Bettencourt finished the game with 18 strikeouts, while Aupont struck out nine.
Both coaches were complimentary of their opposing pitchers.
“We haven’t seen pitching like that the whole year,” Seabury said. “To have good at-bats and see good looks, and to see that type of action is good. It’s only going to make us better.”
“Fenwick never gave up. Their pitcher played well and kept firing,” Palmieri said.
In the bottom of the sixth, with Peabody ahead 5-2, Elizabeth Bettencourt arrived at the plate. She showed that power runs in the family, sending a shot to center field to join the Bettencourt home run party.
“It’s crazy. I haven’t seen that yet this year, so it’s pretty cool,” Palmieri said. “It’s a good family memory for them.”
When asked about his team’s performance, Seabury said there are positives to take away.
“Overall I thought we did some good things. We had some solid at-bats and made some good plays in the field. It unraveled for us in the end with some miscues that you cannot do against one of the top teams in the state,” Seabury said.
One defensive highlight from the Crusaders came in the fourth inning after they intentionally walked a batter to load the bases.
A deep fly ball to center field would normally be enough to score the runner tagging from third, but not when you’re against Meagan Burkinshaw. The center fielder got the ball to the infield with enough time for her catcher, Gabriella Maiuri, to make the tag at home plate.
“It was nice to execute that. We loaded the bases on an intentional walk, and then to execute the fly ball to record the double play was nice,” Seabury said.
Palmieri believes baserunning is something for her team to work on, but credited the Crusaders’ defense.
“We need to work on getting runners in when they’re on base. We left the bases loaded too many times,” Palmieri said. “Fenwick did a great job shutting us down in those big innings.”
HOME RUNS (Fenwick)
Mia Mercurio (1)
HOME RUNS (Peabody)
Abby Bettencourt (2)
Isabel Bettencourt (1)
Elizabeth Bettencourt (1)
Logan Lomasney (1)
