By Rob Silverstein
The Greenwhich Village Little League Blazers came from behind to win their third straight game in the Bronx and Manhattan Girls Senior A Division Softball Conference to bring their record to 4-3-1 (one tie). On Saturday, they trailed North Riverdale 8-1 going into the bottom of the fifth inning, but rallied for 9 runs in the fifth and 5 more in the sixth to secure the 15-8 victory. Other than two innings in which North Riverdale scored all of their runs, the Blazers pitching and defense were very sharp.
Lauro Manos-Hey, who came in as a relief pitcher for the Blazers in the first inning, held North Riverdale scoreless in five of the six innings she pitched. Manos-Hey was supported by some sparkling defense by Sophie Spiegel at shortstop, Mollie Schwartz at first base and Briane Hanley in short centerfield, whose unassisted double play ended North Riverdale’s first inning rally and gave Greenwich Village a chance to come back. Hanley also had several key hits. The Blazers’ Tricia Fratta had a big day at the plate with two singles and a bases-loaded triple in the sixth to put the game out of reach.
On Friday night, the Blazers beat Tony Dapolino’s Senior Team 16-1 behind the combined one-hit pitching performance of Erica Silverstein and Kate Phillips. During the Friday night game, the Blazers’ pitchers were helped by Spiegel’s magnificent performance at catcher. Spiegel threw out all four base runners who attempted to steal second base.
