TURNERS FALLS — Add another chapter to the storied rivalry between Greenfield and Turners Falls. 

The two softball teams met Wednesday night for the second time in five days — Greenfield won the first game 3-2 — and another pitching duel ensued between Green Wave pitcher MacKenzie Paulin and Turners hurler Madi Liimatainen. 

Greenfield scored two runs in the third inning and looked to be cruising to a victory, as Paulin hadn’t allowed a hit or a walk going into the seventh. 

Turners didn’t quit, however, drawing a trio of walks before Anne Kolodziej came through with a two-run single up the middle, the Thunder’s first hit of the game, to tie the game and force extra innings. 

The Green Wave responded in a hurry. The Greenfield bats erupted in the eighth, plating nine runs to take an 11-2 lead. Paulin got a pair of strikeouts and a ground out to close things out, as the Green Wave walked away with an 11-2 victory at Gary Mullins Field. 

“The big thing was we didn’t let [Turners’ rally in the seventh] get us down,” Greenfield coach Ray Dodge said. “I told them we needed to regroup. I didn’t know that would mean nine runs but we’ll take it.” 

In rivalry games, oftentimes it’s the unexpected player who steps up and comes through in a big moment. 

Paulin didn’t allow Turners (9-2) to get anything going through six innings, striking out 14 of the 18 batters she faced. The hosts put the ball in play just four times and only one base runner reached via an error. 

Liimatainen and Holly Myers drew back-to-back walks in the bottom of the seventh, breathing life back into Turners. Paulin got a strikeout for the second out but Madisyn Dietz drew another walk to load the bases for Kolodziej, a senior playing softball for the first time since she was in the fifth grade. 

She drilled the ball back through the middle and into the outfield, scoring Liimatainen and McKenzie Stafford, running for Myers, to tie the game at two. 

“Paulin overpowered us,” Thunder coach Gary Mullins said. “We kept battling. It looked like we had no chance and suddenly we got one big hit and made it a ballgame. It’s a big hit for a kid who hasn’t played ball since the fifth grade.

“That’s a good thing but we can collapse, too,” Mullins added. “The inning from hell showed up.” 

It didn’t take Greenfield (8-1) long to snatch back the momentum. 

Carly Blanchard opened the top of the eighth inning with a walk and Gloria McDonald followed with a single, the Green Wave’s first hit since the fourth inning. With Blanchard on third, Meghan Collins grounded to Liimatainen, who fired home to get Blanchard. Blanchard was able to slide under the tag, with the ball squirting free to give the Green Wave a 3-2 lead. 

Liimatainen got her second strikeout of the inning on the ensuing at bat, but Greenfield more than rallied with two outs. 

Ellis Benitez, the Green Wave’s No. 9 hitter, cracked a single that drove in McDonald and Collins to put Greenfield ahead, 5-2. 

Anna Bucala drew a walk and the Green Wave executed a double steal, with Benitez sliding under the tag at home following a throw to the infield to add to the Green Wave lead. 

Flynn doubled to drive in Bucala before three straight walks led to Flynn coming around. Ivy Rae knocked a single to drive in Paulin and Blanchard, and McDonald scored on a throwing error to give Greenfield its 11-2 lead going into the bottom of the eighth. 

“The reason we had the big inning was because we grinded out at bats the first seven innings,” Dodge said. “We made [Liimatainen] throw a lot of pitches and she threw a lot more in that [eighth] inning. We got to her because we wore her out.” 

Mullins said Turners’ defense doomed the home side in the eighth.

“They made Madi throw a lot of extra pitches because we couldn’t make plays behind her,” Mullins said. 

It was the top of the order that got Greenfield going in the third. 

Bucala walked and scored on a Flynn base hit that made it’s way through the gap between short and third, the Green Wave’s first hit of the game. Blanchard blasted a double to knock in Flynn, giving the Green Wave their 2-0 lead. 

Greenfield threatened in the fourth after Collins singled and stole a pair of bases to get to third, but she was thrown out trying to score when Benitez put the ball in play in the infield. 

In the sixth, Rae and Grace Laurie walked and stole a base to put runners on second and third for the Green Wave, but Liimatainen got a ground out to end the inning without any damage done. 

“When it was 2-0 in the bottom of the seventh, we’re thinking ‘here we go again,’” Dodge said. “We had the top of their order coming up and we knew it was going to be a dog fight.” 

Paulin finished with 18 strikeouts while Liimatainen tallied 11 strikeouts.