Skyler Tenney might have the smallest strike zone of anyone on the Conant softball team, but now, she has their biggest hit of the season.
The Orioles, down 7-3 at one point to the visiting Pelham Pythons during Thursday’s playoff game, clawed all the way back to tie it at seven. With two outs in the bottom of the seventh, Tenney, the nine hitter, came up with the winning run, Briana Dionne, on third. Tenney stroked a pitch to the outfield that plated Dionne for the winning run and then returned to home plate — right into the arms of Sierra Landry, who scooped Conant’s hero up in an embrace and swung her around, Tenney’s bright blue pigtails flying in the breeze.
“Skyler’s big,” said head coach Tom Lambert after the game. “That’s why I put her in nine. I told her at the beginning of the game — ‘You’re batting ninth for a reason.’ She’s a good ballplayer. I trust Skyler. She’s going to put the bat on the ball.”
Tenney said it felt “awesome” to hit her first career walkoff, finishing the Orioles’ climb back out of a deep hole.
“We’re good at comebacks,” Tenney said.
Conant found themselves needing a comeback from the get-go, as Sarah Ratcliffe smacked a two-run homer off Maddy Springfield in the first to put Pelham ahead.
“We’ve played from a deficit all year,” Lambert said. “We’ve got to stop doing it.”
Conant briefly tied the game in the second, but Pelham scored in the third and continued to answer the Orioles’ attack as the game progressed, maintaining a lead that ballooned to 7-3 by the top of the sixth.
Conant scored twice in the bottom of the sixth, on a double by Madison Picard that scored Bethany Hector and a groundout by Tenney that scored Picard.
Down 7-5 and down to their last ups, Conant got a one-out walk from Grace Chadbourne. Brenna Welch singled and advanced Chadbourne to third, then stole second to free up first for a Dionne walk. Hector drove in Chadbourne with a single and Welch took home on a passed ball to tie the game. After Picard struck out, Tenney came to the plate with two down to finish the comeback.
Tenney said teamwork and energy were the keys to her team’s comeback.
“I knew we were going to keep going,” Tenney said. “We’re going to keep going.”
Tenney finished 2-4 with two RBI. Chadbourne was 1-1 with two walks and two runs scored. Springfield struck out 14.
The No. 7 Orioles head to No. 2 Franklin on Monday at 4 p.m., after the Golden Tornados dispatched Monadnock 15-1 to advance. Franklin only lost once in the regular season, a 2-1 tilt with Bishop Brady.
“We’ve got to clean it up!” Lambert said of his team’s approach in the coming game. “We’ve just got to get consistent hits, we’ve got to be on it, we’ve got to stay up all the time. Understand the game, keep it easy, and just play.”