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Sports

Hit Parade Leads Stoughton High Softball Past Attleboro

Thirteen different Stoughton players collected a hit in the Black Knights' 7-0 victory over Attleboro Thursday afternoon at home.

In a game that the Black Knights had to win to help keep their postseason chances from fading, the Stoughton High softball team put together a total team effort to beat Hockomock League rival Attleboro 7-0 at home on Thursday afternoon. The game was scheduled for the day before, but rain held it off for an extra 24 hours.

The Black Knights now are 5-7 overall (4-6 Hockomock League and 2-2 in the Davenport Division) and need to win at least five of their last eight games to qualify for postseason. The victory was Stoughton’s second this season against Attleboro, after a over the Bombardiers on April 15.

The shutout was the third this season for Stoughton senior pitcher Jess Olans. Olans only had one strikeout, scattered eight hits, allowed no walks and pitched herself out of four innings where Attleboro had runners in scoring position with less than two outs.

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The biggest threat against Olans was in the fifth inning, when she escaped from a bases loaded jam with no outs. Olans was also the beneficiary of three stellar defensive plays, two by senior centerfielder Colleen Flaherty (2 for 3 batting) and one by senior rightfielder Nicole Beauregard, who caught a fly ball and then turned it into a double play, throwing an Attleboro runner out at the plate. The Black Knights had only one error in the game.

Offensively, Stoughton had 13 different players with at least one hit and 14 that reached base. Six of seven pinch hitters got on base, and Stoughton scored six of its seven runs with two outs.

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“We had great production from many players and our hitting has come around after a slow start to the season,” Stoughton coach Janet Sullivan said. “It was a great team effort and kept us in a position to get into the (postseason) tournament. We got the timely hit and made the key plays defensively that allows you to win.”

Attleboro, a very young team, which starts three freshman and four sophomores, had its chances offensively, but couldn’t get the timely hit. Defensively, Attleboro had a big error in the fifth inning that helped Stoughton put the game out of reach.

“We had our chances, but we didn’t capitalize at the plate or in the field, while Stoughton did,” said Attleboro coach Deb Carreiro. “We gave ourselves opportunities to win, but our youth and our inability to finish off our chances have prevented us victories that we could have had, and again did so in this game. We continue to improve, but we just got to be better and take advantage more of our chances both offensively and defensively.”

Stoughton scored two runs in each of the first, second and fifth innings off of tough luck Attleboro freshman pitcher Hannah Smith. Megan Flaherty, Stoughton’s sophomore shortstop, had an RBI sacrifice fly and senior captain and catcher Molly Zuk had an RBI single, to give Stoughton a 2-0 lead after a rainy first inning.

Stoughton added to its lead, in the second inning, connecting on six singles, with Meghan Flaherty getting her second RBI of the game and Beauregard following with an RBI single, giving the Black Knights a 4-0 advantage.

Stoughton added two more runs in the fifth inning on senior Megan Guerard’s RBI single, an error and an RBI single by pinch hitter Liz Rock. Stoughton’s final run came across the plate in the sixth inning on pinch hitter Maggie Widberg’s RBI single.

Attleboro (2-9 overall, 2-8 Hockomock League and 0-4 in the Kelly-Rex Division) had some solid individual performances, as well. Smith went two-for-two to go along with her 4+ innings of pitching. Vanessa Alverez came on in relief and also added a double, and sophomore centerfielder Bridgette Proulx threw out a Stoughton runner at home plate.

Stoughton travels to on Friday, a team that the Black knights lost to 8-1, less than two weeks ago at home. Attleboro will travel to Oliver Ames.

Check out the postgame interview with Colleen Flaherty in the media gallery above.

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