MARBLEHEAD — Missed opportunities will come back and haunt you in the state tournament. That was the story of Monday’s Division 2 North quarterfinal between the No. 4 Marblehead and No. 5 Whittier Tech softball teams.
The Magicians left runners on second and third twice and couldn’t log the key big hit, falling 6-0 to the Wildcats at Marblehead Middle School.
“We had runners on second and third twice with (No. 3 hitter) Charlotte (Plakans) at the plate,” Magicians coach Johnny Gold said. “That’s the perfect scenario. We just didn’t get it done today. We got beat by a better team today. That’s all there is to it. You have to be perfect, or pretty close, in state tournament games. We just didn’t get it done.”
Magicians starting pitcher Plakans threw seven innings, walked three and struck out five. Wildcats starter Nicole Verrette dazzled in the circle, fanning eight and allowing four hits in a shutout effort.
“She (Verrette) was good,” Gold said. “She had a screwball and then she’d go to the outside. She threw that high fastball a few times and we went down swinging. She was very good. I think that was the best team we’ve played all year.”
Both teams got off to quiet starts at the plate but it was Whittier Tech that clawed out to a 2-0 lead after two and a half innings. Marblehead threatened in the bottom of the third when Emma Ferrante drew a one-out walk and Mercedes Pelletier (2-for-3) roped a single. Verrette escaped the jam with a groundout and strikeout.
“We had our chances,” Gold said. “It just didn’t happen but it’s alright. We’ll shake it off and get back to it.
“That’s high school sports,” Gold added. “You give it everything you got and in the end you learn from it. We had a pretty good season and I’ll take that anytime.”
Sammi Treff (1-for-3) doubled to right-center to start the bottom of the fourth. Verrette sent the next three Marblehead batters down in order, keeping the Magicians off the scoreboard.
And it was more of the same in the bottom of the fifth. Madi Ernst led the frame with a walk and Pelletier singled after a flyout. Sophie Vener’s sac-bunt moved Ernst and Pelletier over to second and third but Verrette induced a pop-fly to end the inning.
The missed opportunities came back to haunt the Magicians in the top of the seventh, when Whittier Tech plated four runs to put the game out of reach. The first three scored on an outfield error and the fourth crossed home plate on a RBI single. Whittier Tech’s late rally turned a close 2-0 lead into a comfortable 6-0 advantage.
Verrette sent the Magicians down in order in the bottom of the seventh, sealing the 6-0 win.
The Magicians end the season at 17-3. The team’s five-member senior class ends its run with a 66-16 record.
“I’m proud of the kids,” Gold said. “They did a lot of really good things. We have a JV program that went undefeated this year. There’s a lot of positives moving into next year. You learn from things like this. We practiced hard but in the end, we had our chances and got beat by a better team.”