SWANTON – The Missisquoi Valley Union Thunderbirds fell 12-2 to the BFA-St. Albans Comets in a classic Franklin County softball contest on Friday, May 1.
The Comets got on the board early as Irie Shedd drove in two runs for BFA. Senior pitcher Addison Gates earned a strikeout for the last out of the inning.
Shedd retired the first three MVU batters in order to end the first inning, and Gates and the T-birds held BFA scoreless in the top of the second.
Brooke Pilbin led off with a double for the Thunderbirds in the bottom of the second. Gates put down a textbook bunt, reaching base and advancing Pilbin to third, but Shedd struck out a batter and induced a ground ball for an out to end the inning.
A Jillian Smith single advanced Marah McGinn to second, as the Comets looked to add to their lead in the top of the third. Shedd smacked a one-out single to plate McGinn, and Gonyeau picked up an RBI for the team’s fourth run.
Brooklyn Cota fielded a high fly ball to center to stave off any further Comet offense; the Comets ended the inning with a 4-0 lead.
Adam Laroche
Lilliana Fournier’s two-out single, combined with Longway’s fielder’s choice, put two runners on base for MVU.
Pilbin came through with a deep fly ball to center field that just missed the fence and a Comet defender, plating two runs. The score was 4-2 BFA at the end of the fourth.
Emma Parah led off with a single in the top of the fifth for BFA, and Chatham Brouillette picked up an RBI on a hard-hit double. Nora Tatro reached on an error, putting two runners on base for Smith, who plated two runs. Gates ended the top of the fifth with a strikeout; the Comets led 7-2.
Shedd made short work of the T-birds in the bottom of the fourth, retiring three consecutive batters.
Shelby Marchessault replaced Gates in the circle in the top of the fifth, retiring two consecutive batters, and inducing an infield fly to end the half inning.
Longway led off with a scorching single down the left field line for MVU, but the Comets silenced the next batters, ending the fifth with the 7-2 lead intact.
Marchessault struck out two batters to start the top of the sixth, ending the inning by inducing a high fly ball after handing out one walk.
Pilbin extended her hitting streak with a single to center in the bottom of the sixth, but Shedd retired the next two batters.
Shedd led off for the Comets in the top of the seventh, sending a well-hit ball deep for a double. Fournier got the inning’s first out, catching a pop-up behind the plate.
The Comets had a nice single from Parah to plate a run. Nora Tatro added a run on a two-out single. McGinn added a run on a double, and Ella Dunnigan picked up an RBI. BFA led 12-2 at the top of the seventh.
Adam Laroche
Annabelle Godin led off with a double for the Thunderbirds in the bottom of the seventh, but Shedd ended the inning and the game, securing the win for the Comets.
Emmah Parah, who had three hits and one RBI in the game, said, “I’ve struggled for a couple of practices dropping my hands, but yesterday I worked with Gramps (Coach McGinn) all practice, and it paid off because today I got to contribute, which was exciting.”
When asked about the team’s chemistry, Parah said, “We’re like a family, we’re so close. We hang out together and have fun.”
Irie Shedd, freshman, spoke of her first in-county contest with MVU: “I’m going to remember how well we did as a team, especially batting. I had a good defense behind me, and we played a good game as a team. MVU played well, too, so it was a good game.”
When asked about her first year on varsity, Shedd said, “I like the culture on the team. It’s a good team family, and everyone is really nice and supportive of each other. Coming up as a freshman, it was a little nerve-wracking, but it’s been so amazing playing and competing with this team and being with them on and off the field.”
Comets’ coach Bert Berthiaume spoke of MVU’s senior pitcher, saying, “I want to give credit to Addison Gates. I thought she was crafty and kept us off balance. She did a great job keeping them in the game, and I thought she was really tough today.”
Adam Laroche
Speaking of his Comets, he said, “I was proud of the fact that we got contributions from everybody in the order. Emma (Parah) is batting ninth, and she got three hits. And for Irie, she had her first MVU-BFA start, and she handled the pressure very well. Brooke Pilbin had three great hits against her, but other than that, she kept things under control, so that’s a great start.”
MVU coach Bill Sheets spoke of the contest: “This is our first year where we’re in the Metro, but it’s D2 playoffs. That’s truly where we believe we belong. Today, we played an elite team with elite pitching and elite hitters. We fell behind early, but we had some very encouraging things.”
Sheets was pleased with the well-rounded effort, saying, “We got all 16 of our players, not only in the game, but in at-bats against elite pitching, and that has one purpose: it will make us better for the playoffs.”
Sheets also complimented several players: “Addison threw well, and Shelby went in for three innings and did exceptionally well. Brooke had three hits, and Annabelle Godin hit a double down the line. Addy Longway also had great contact. It serves us well for the rest of the season to see elite pitching in a game like this.”
Speaking of the season, Sheets said, “We’re not going to finish number one in D2 because we play a tough schedule, but two years ago, we were a seven seed and won the D1 title. We know how to play on the road, and we’re looking forward to it. And hats off to BFA; they’re an awesome team.”
Adam Laroche
Highlights: The Comets’ freshman pitcher, Irie Shedd, threw a complete game, throwing seven innings, while allowing two runs on seven hits, walking one, and striking out 11. Addison Gates threw four innings for the T-birds, allowing seven runs on seven hits (five earned), while walking four and striking out three. Shelby Marchessault threw three innings, allowing five runs on five hits (no earned ryan), walking one and striking out two.
Brooke Pilbin, Addison Longway, Lilliana Fournier, Addison Gates, and Annabelle Godin all had hits for MVU. Brooke Pilbin led MVU with three hits and two RBI. BFA-St. Albans had hits from Chatham Brouillette, Nora Tatro, Marah McGinn, Jillian Smith, Irie Shedd, and Emma Parah. Shedd led the offense with three hits and three RBI.