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South continues to own Bridge with 19-11 softball win

By Tom King - Staff Writer | May 11, 2022

Nashua South's Hailey Bettencourt can't hang on to the ball as Nashua North's Samantha Smalls slides into second during Tuesday night's Battle of the Bridge at Rivier University. (Telegraph photo by TOM KING)

NASHUA – The lights were shining on the Nashua High School North and South softball teams on Tuesday night, but the brightest of them all may have been Panther Liz DeRusha.

You knew South coach Kevin Handy meant business when took his best catcher, DeRusha, and put her on the mound in the fourth inning. DeRusha did the trick in a game in which both teams combined for 29 hits, as she allowed just two earned runs over four innings in South’s 19-11 win at Rivier University.

“You know, just do whatever you’ve got to do for your team, catching and going into pitch,” DeRusha said. “I was excited, the atmosphere was fun, a bunch of people here. I just used the momentum we had from at bat into going into pitch and I was ready.

“It was my first time pitching in the Battle of the Bridge game, it was exciting.”

“It was tough there because she’s a top catcher in the state, but she’s been there, done that,” Handy said. “I knew if I wanted somebody to close this game out it was going to be my junior captain.”

For the Panthers and DeRusha, it wasn’t just a matter of closing, it was a matter of coming from behind as the Titans, still seeking their first win at 0-10, felt they were on their way to getting it up 8-4 after three. But South, thanks to a couple of the Titan’s six errors and some alert base running plated four to tie things at 8 in the fourth.

DeRusha tossed two straight shutout innings and the Panthers then went to work with an eight run sixth and a 16-8 lead. They sent 13 to the plate against Titans pitcher Tylea Wong, with seven hits, two North errors, the big blow a triple turned into a round-tripper by Isabel Mederos on a North miscue, a doubles by Jill Daley and Malia Martel, a nd singles by DeRusha, Morgan Gillis, Emily Richard, and Hailey Bettencourt, among others.

South also scored three in the top of the seventh on four hits, two errors and a wild pitch.

Despite the tough loss, the Titans still looked like they were enjoying the atmosphere, etc. Down 2-0 they two advantage of two South errors in the first and a big RBI hit by Taylor Joyal to score three runs, and they got three more in the second off South starter Daley with big hits by Cailin Carbonneau and Samantha Small and then two in the third with Mack Brady getting a big hit.

It’s been a tough spring for both teams – North has three freshmen in the lineup and South is a little deeper but also young. But for both last night was a highlight.

“We had a lot of fun competing,” Titans first-year coach – and Rivier alum – Taylor Rowsell said. “We played as a team throughout. I’m really proud of these girls, they really picked each other up, even when they had errors and had issues going on in the field, they were mentally tough and played through it.

“I’m really, really proud of them. South did a good job getting the bat on the ball and placing those hits where they weren’t quite playable.”

“Even watching North this year, they do hit the ball,” Handy said. “I felt if we could go on a run there and capitalize on some of their mistakes with some good hits by us, we’d be OK. My hats off to Coach Taylor over there and the girls because they played tremendously.”

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