Everett softball team completes regular season with win over Cambridge, GBL title, many individual successes

Skane, Rossi and company ready for the postseason to begin this week

  The Everett High School softball team (12-2 in the Greater Boston League, 17-2 overall) completed the regular season with a nice and tidy 3-0 shutout win over non-league rival Cambridge at Glendale Park on May 24. Since then, the Crimson Tide have been prepping for the postseason as they await the announcement of the Division 1 state tournament pairings on May 31 (after press deadline). According to the latest power rankings on May 29, they are 37^th overall among all Division 1 squads.

  “Coach [Jennifer] Nigro and I believe the reason why this team has done so well again this season is because they work together, which contributes to their success, whether if it’s at practice or in a game,” said coach Stacy Schiavo.

  Pitcher Kristi Skane went the distance in the circle against the Falcons, scattering four hits, while striking out six to secure her eighth shutout of the season.

  The game was scoreless through four innings, before the Tide broke through with three in the fifth. Bryanna Mason started the winning rally off with a double. Emma Longmore then drew a one-out walk. After both runners advanced into scoring position on a passed ball, Emilia Maria-Babcock drove them home with a hit. Skane was next up and was promptly hit by a pitch. A short time later, the Everett hurler was thrown out on the backend of an attempted double steal attempt, with Longmore sliding safely home to account for the third run of the frame.

  Skane did the rest with her arm to continue to shut down her Cambridge counterparts over the next two stanzas, with some help from her defense.

  “The defense played tough, especially when [Cambridge] got runners on base,” said Schiavo. “The biggest threat occurred in the fifth when they loaded the bases with two outs, but our catcher Kayley Rossi tagged out a runner coming home to end the threat on a ball hit back to the circle.”

A lineup of offensive firepower

  There’s really no secret to Everett’s success this spring. Besides Skane’s pitching, seven of the nine hitters in the lineup batted over .400. Centerfielder Emilia Maria-Babcock led the way with a .542 batting average and an .819 slugging percentage, which breaks down to 30 singles, two doubles, three triples, four homeruns and 21 RBI. Third baseman Alexa Uga (.477 batting average, .662 slugging percentage, 24 singles, 4 doubles, 1 triple, 2 homeruns and 23 RBI); first baseman Bryanna Mason (.475 batting average, .831 slugging percentage, 16 singles, 7 doubles, 1 triple, 4 homeruns and 15 RBI); pitcher Kristi Skane (.469 batting average, .703 slugging percentage, 19 singles, 8 doubles, 2 triples, 1 homerun and 20 RBI); right fielder Ashley Seward (.439 batting average, .877 slugging percentage, 13 singles, 5 doubles, 3 triples, 4 homeruns and 20 RBI); second baseman Emma Longmore (.429 batting average, .589 slugging percentage, 19 singles, 3 doubles, 2 homeruns and 21 RBI); and catcher Kayley Rossi (.410 batting average, .672 slugging percentage, 14 singles, 8 doubles, 1 triple, 2 homeruns and 20 RBI) rounded out the top seven Everett hitters.

Defensive gems

  Catcher Kayley Rossi (fielding percentage .993), third baseman Bryanna Mason (fielding percentage .980), centerfielder Emilia Maria-Babcock (fielding percentage, .980), shortstop Gianna Masucci (fielding percentage .930) and pitcher Kristi Skane (fielding percentage .955) were the Everett leaders around the diamond this spring.

Coming up aces

  Kristi Skane threw 109 innings in the circle, compiling a 17-2 record with eight shutouts this spring. She gave up 65 hits, 36 runs (27 of them were earned) and 26 walks, while whiffing 143. Her earned run average during the regular season was 1.73.

  “The team has greatly benefitted from Skane in the circle and Rossi behind the plate,” said Schiavo. “Both players are also friends off the field, which contributes to the rapport they have built up over the years on the diamond. Rossi knows Skane’s strengths and weaknesses, and what pitches she has going for her before the game even starts. They have spent this entire season polishing up on Skane’s skills to help the team keep runners off the bases. You can also see the trust Skane has in Rossi by stopping wild pitches and her ability to call pitches, even when Skane may think they are not working that day.”

  “Skane also played in the outfield before stepping into the pitching circle this year,” added Schiavo. “She worked hard in the off-season to return as the best pitcher in the GBL, which helped lead the team to the league title.”