Mt. Hope fielders are used to seeing strikeouts from ace Reily Amaral, but against Toll Gate, the Huskies saw hits and lots of them as The Titans thrashed Mt. Hope 11-7 in the winner’s bracket quarterfinals at Mt. Hope High School on Monday evening. Mt. Hope will host Narragansett in a losers bracket playoff game on Tuesday at 3:45 p.m.

It was the first time this season that a Division II team had scored double digits on Amaral and the Huskies. The previous high was five runs scored by Rogers on May 3. Amaral who struck out six and yielded 12 hits, didn’t look herself on the mound and to make matters worse, the Mt. Hope defense didn’t have her back as they committed six errors in the field.

“Too many errors,” said Huskies head coach Craig Giarusso. “They put pressure on us and we cracked.”

Coach Giarusso was frustrated with his team after the Huskies made two first inning errors and Toll Gate led 1-0. He just about boiled over when the Titans came back to tie 3-3 in the top of the second and took a 4-3 lead off another error in the top of the third.

The Huskies offense fought back to regain the lead twice and almost pulled it off a third time, but Toll Gate put the game away and scored three runs in the top of the seventh.

Stephenson and Amaral hit bombs

Down 1-0 in the bottom of the first inning Huskies lead off hitter Elsa White (3 for 4 and 1 run scored) smashed a double over the head of Titans left fielder Kathryn Motta. Jayda Sylvia drew a walk to give the Huskies runners at first and second with one out for clean up hitter Grace Stephenson. The right handed power hitter bashed a Delaney Wilson 0-1 pitch over the left field fence for a three run bomb for a Mt. Hope 3-1 lead. 

With the score tied 3-3 in the bottom of the third the Huskies offense came through again, Stephenson walked with one out and Amaral stepped to the plate and lined Wilson’s pitch over the centerfield fence for a two run homer and a Huskies 5-3 lead.

Titans storm back

The Titans stormed back for four runs of their own in the top of the fourth inning to take an 8-5 lead. Motta led off with a single and moved to second when Amaral hit Sydnee Perreault with a pitch. Motta then stole third base and scored when Stephenson’s on target throw scooted into the outfield by the outstretched glove of shortstop Julia Allen attempting to cover third base for Sammy Malafronte who was playing in after Toll Gate hitter Julia Maker threatened to bunt. Perreault moved to third base on the play and later scored on a single by Maker. Toll Gate clean up hitter Julia Kraus then crushed an Amaral pitch over the center field wall for a two run homer. The Titans celebrated when Kraus reached home plate and dance off the field. 

Huskies mount another comeback

The Huskies mounted another comeback in the bottom of the sixth inning. Alice Grantham led off with a single that went through the left side of the infield. She ran half way to second base when she saw it open, but Perreault the centerfielder had crept in toward the base. She collected the throw from left field, ran Grantham down and tagged her out as she desperately tried to get back to first base. 

Malafronte then singled and Allen reached on an error to give the Huskies runners on first and second base with one out. White, who had been an elite hitter all season long, blasted a double into the left centerfield gap plating both runners to cut the lead to 8-7. She ran to third base on Van Amberg’s bunt. Sylvia the team’s three hitter belted a fly ball to left field, but Motta, the Titans left fielder, made a running catch for the third out. 

Toll Gate scored three more runs in the top of the seventh with an error, a hit batsman, a single by Amanda Preston and a double by Kraus. This time, it was too much for the Huskies to overcome as they went down in order in the bottom of the seventh.