Alexus Vergobbe and Logan Anderson didn’t mind Monday afternoon’s lousy conditions one bit.
Vergobbe and Anderson combined for six of Pioneer Valley Regional School’s nine hits and recorded all of the Panthers’ nine RBIs as they downed Mohawk Trail Regional High School, 10-6, in Franklin County League softball action in Northfield.
Vergobbe had a career day with a single, triple, home run and six RBIs. Anderson ripped three singles and drove in three runs.
Vergobbe opened the day with an RBI single to help the Panthers take a 2-0 lead.
After the Warriors’ Alicia Johnston belted a leadoff homer in the second to cut the deficit in half, Pioneer responded with three runs in the third to build a 5-1 advantage. Lizzie Fuller doubled, Kaylee Gibson drew a walk and then, after Anderson lined out to left, Vergobbe crushed a shot to left-center field for a three-run homer.
The Panthers (3-3 overall, 2-2 FCL) added one in the fourth and Vergobbe smacked a two-run triple in the fifth to make it 8-1 before Mohawk got two back in the top of the sixth. Pioneer added two important insurance runs in the bottom of the sixth before the Warriors (4-4, 1-4 FCL) rallied for three in the seventh to close the final margin.
“She has a very subtle but quick bat,” said Pioneer head coach Jole Cole of Vergobbe. “When she sees the pitch she just swings. She’s deceivingly strong.”
Shelby Avery added a double for the Panthers (3-3, 2-2 FCL).
Caitlin Johnston finished with two hits and two RBIs, Alicia Johnson had two hits and one RBI, and Ashley Reynolds tripled and drove in a run to account for the Warriors’ offense.
Gibson struck out 10, walked nine and allowed five hits in the complete-game win.
Lydia Donahue, who worked the first four innings, suffered the loss. She fanned five and walked five.
Both teams return to action Wednesday at 3:30 — Pioneer travels to Mahar Regional School, while Mohawk hosts Turners Falls High School.
Mohawk 99, Pioneer 46 — Eli Shearer earned three event victories and ran a leg of a winning relay to help Mohawk beat Pioneer, 99-46, in an Intercounty League boys’ track and field meet Monday afternoon in Buckland.
Shearer earned wins in the long jump in 17 feet, 9¾ inches and the triple jump in 39-3¼, and raced to a blue ribbon in the 100 meters in 11.7 seconds. He also helped the 4×400 relay team to victory.
Seth Hoynoski grabbed individual wins in the 200 meters (25.1) and 110 high hurdles (17.6), and also ran a leg of the 4×400.
Two other Warriors also won multiple individual events — Bennett Boucias took the 800 meters (2:20.5) and one-mile (5:10.5), while Sam Rode was best in the 400 intermediate hurdles (64.8) and two-mile (11:38.9).
Zach Coburn won the 400 meters (57.4) and was also part fo the 4×400 relay, Jacob Cross placed first in the high jump (5-8) and John Demech claimed the top spot in the javelin (101-10).
The Panthers won three events — Andrew Pratt claimed top honors in the discus (105-5), AJ Wilson took the shot put (35-4½) and Jake Kelton was first in the pole vault (9-0).
Mohawk (4-0, 4-0) now faces Mahar Thursday in Orange in what amounts to a battle for the IL title. The Warriors will be without star athlete Amar Abbatiello, who was injured during Saturday’s Steele Relays.
“Mahar is looking real tough,” said Warriors head coach Shawn Billings. “It’s going to come down to a lot of seconds and thirds.”
Athol 3, Putnam 1 — While Putnam Vocational Technical Academy was struggling with its service game Monday afternoon, Athol High School, and especially Lorenzo Carra, were not.
Carra served 22 points, including three aces, and added one kill, 21 assists, six digs and two blocks to lead the Red Raiders to a 25-15, 25-7, 17-25, 25-15 win in a PVIAC East Division boys’ volleyball match in Springfield.
Tyler Lajoie finished with 12 kills, 16 assists, eight digs and four blocks in the win, and Carter Amadon had 11 kills and four digs. Josh Herk had four kills, Dustin Aikey had three kills, and Nelson Leadbetter added two kills and 26 digs. Zack Roberts finished with two kills, Allen Clair had two kills, eight digs and an ace, and Ryan Whelpley, Avery Clyatt and Xavier Santana each had a kill.