HIGH SCHOOL SOFTBALL: HORSEHEADS BATS EXPLODE IN FINAL TWO INNINGS AS THEY TOP CORNING TO WIN STAC WEST TITLE (24 PHOTOS) (May 9, 2023)

By Brian Fees
Southern Tier Sports Report
CORNING — A 3-1 lead was gone and suddenly the Horseheads softball team found themselves tied with just four outs left in the game with the division title on the line.

The Horseheads players knew they were capable of answering, but no one imagined what would come next.

With two outs in the sixth inning the Blue Raiders scored eight runs, and then they came back and scored 15 in the seventh to beat Corning 26-3 to win the STAC West crown.

“Corning tied the game 3-3 and Megan (Wolf) was having a few control issues at times and I was like, ‘guys, it’s going to be a tough two innings, we better start battling,’” Horseheads coach Paul Richmond said. “We snuck one in with two outs and the flood gates opened. I don’t think I’ve ever seen that in all the years I’ve watched my daughter, a team string that many hits together. I’m super proud of them.”

For the Horseheads players it’s special to capture the division title.

“It’s great,” Molly Wolf said. “Coming off a loss last year (to Corning for the division title last season), it’s great coming back this year and pulling it off.”

For the Horseheads players one of the keys was keeping a positive attitude when Corning tied the game.

“We are definitely calm under pressure,” Molly Wolf said. “Been there a couple times and we got through it. Keeping our heads up, not letting the score affect us. We knew we had it from the beginning, we just had to keep pushing through.”

“We didn’t let that affect our moods or attitude toward the game,” Megan Wolf said. “We kept it upbeat and most teams wouldn’t do that and that’s why we did what we did today. I think we all just had confidence in ourselves, we never really doubted what would happen, even when it got tied up like that.”

“We didn’t let it (Corning coming back) affect us, and we were all very positive and outgoing,” Maddie Matkosky said. “We put a lot of time and effort into it and I think tonight everyone was able to contrite and it was a lot of fun.”

Everything started with two outs in the sixth. Bella Giammichele started the inning by reaching on an error and she was at second with two outs.

Things started as Caitlin Yearick hit a ground ball between first and second. Corning’s defender made a sliding stop to keep the ball in the infield, and threw from her knees, but the Yearick was able to beat the throw and Giammichele scored on the play.

One batter later Olivia French crushed a home run to center and Kailey McCormick, Kristen Cole, Megan Wolf and Sophia Bonell all singled, before Molly Wolf tripled. Giammichele, who started the inning, singled as Horseheads put together eight straight hits to score the eight runs.

In the seventh inning Matkosky singled and Yearick hit a home run, the third of the game for the Blue Raiders. French reached on an error. Two outs were recorded and with French at second base the Blue Raiders had 14 straight batters reach, 11 on hits, two reaching on errors and one walking.

It started as Megan Wolf singled, then Bonnell and Molly Wolf doubled. Giammichele reached on an error and Katie Morse walked.

Katie Hinman singled and Lacey Baker singled, before Olivia French doubled. McCormick singled and Cole doubled. Megan Wolf singled and Bonnell reached on an error.

Molly Wolf and Giammichele each doubled for Horseheads.

Overall Horseheads had 28 hits in the game as nine different players had multiple hits in the game.

“We played as a team tonight and that’s what we needed,” Megan Wolf said. “Everyone contributed in some way and that was huge for us.”

Our team contributed in so many ways tonight. Just really proud of some of the people that got their opportunity and they did something with it. Very proud of our team, because we played together tonight.”

For Horseheads everything has changed from the beginning of the year. The team dropped their first five games of the year in Myrtle Beach and began the year 1-7 overall. They are now 7-8 having won six of their past seven games.

“As a first year coach I probably assumed a few too many things and after the season got started I realized we probably needed to work on the approach we take hitting,” Richmond said. “It was a slow process. The girls have been trending up recently, making contact, fouling off pitches. Today they were able to put those pitches in the field of play. It blows my mind how well they hit the ball today. Corning is always a really good program and coach (Mike) Johnston is a super good coach.

“0-5 after Myrtle, I asked to play the best and I guess you have to be careful of what you wish for sometimes. We had two good games at the end down there and just came out as losses. Maybe in hindsight the adversity has helped us because we have had a pretty good schedule when we’ve got back, we have won a few games. I guess it’s the right time in the season to start winning.”

The players know they have come a long way since the beginning of the season.

“Corning is our biggest rival and just being able to do what we did tonight, starting from the beginning of the year to now is a major improvement, and good for our team,” Megan Wolf said.

The team has been proud of how far they have come this season.

“We have come a long way, everyone was up and positive,” Matkosky said. “I think that really helped contribute to everyone doing good tonight.”

 The Blue Raiders have bene working hard on their approach at the plate all season and it’s starting to pay off. Through the first five games of the year the team scored eight runs, including just three runs in the first four games of the year.

Eight games into the season Horseheads had scored 13 runs. Over the past seven games they have scored 82 runs.

“We’ve been working on it since early in the year,” Richmond said. “It’s tough when it’s freezing out. It’s tough when you go a week without a game, or it’s tough in the cage. What we are doing, we are trying to let the ball travel real deep and then just attack it where it is. That’s what we did today, and hopefully we can keep it going.”

The players know teams will pitch them outside, and they have been working on that.

“Our approach was working outside, working outside,” Molly Wolf said. “We knew they were going to throw us outside, we have been getting that a lot this season. So, we’ve been working a lot on the outside and wasting away the ones we didn’t like and waiting for ours to come.”

The hitting has been something that’s been getting better and better all year.

“So proud, hitting we really struggled at the beginning,” Molly Wolf said. “But, we’ve really come together and we worked as a team to produce runs and clearly we did tonight.”

Good defense and some big strikeouts helped Horseheads slow the Corning Hawks offense as they mounted their comeback. They got two runs in the fifth to to tie the game, but the damage could have been rose.

Sophia Polzella, who blasted a long home run to left field for the Hawks first run, walked to start the innin. Kendall Curreri laid down a sacrifice bunt and then Payton Sullivan doubled home Polzella. Maddie Dibble walked. Corning had pinch runner Jacqui Crisco take off from first, Horseheads fired a throw quickly to the second baseman playing in, who fired it back home, but Sullivan scored to tie the game. That left a runner on second with two outs, but Wolf got a pop out to end the threat.

After the eight-run inning by Horseheads the Hawks loaded the bases with one out. Lauren Teribury singled and Sydney Layton walked. Polzella then reached on an error, but Megan Wolf got back-to-back strikeouts to end the inning.

“Knowing my defense is behind men and knowing I just have to throw strikes and they will make the plays is definitely a relief,” Megan Wolf said.

Having runners on base is something that Wolf has dealt with well all year.

“Just like the pressure a little bit,” she said. “It’s okay, my team rallied behind me and got the hits and we got it done.”

One thing that helps in pressure situations is the fact that the Blue Raiders were there a year ago, winning the sectional title as they rallied in the final to win.

“Coach today was reminding us of our best memories and those were our best memories, and just thinking of that gave us the confidence moving forward,” Megan Wolf said.

Megan Wolf was 4-for-6 with a double, a triple, three RBI and four runs scored. Bonnell had two hits, with a double, two RBI and three runs scored.

Molly Wolf was 4-for-5 with three doubles, four RBI and two runs scored and Giammichele had three hits, a double, two RBI and two runs scored.

Matkosky was 3-for-4 with a home run, a double, three runs and an RBI and Katie Morse scored a run.

Katie Hinman had a hit and scored a run and Yearick had two hits, with a home run, three RBI and two runs scored.

Baker had a hit, an RBI and a run scored and French was 3-for-5 with a home run, a double, four RBI and three runs scored.

McCormick was 3-for-5 with three RBI and two runs scored. Cole had two hits, with a double, an RBI and two runs scored.

Megan Wolf struck out 12 and allowed three hits in six innings, and allowing three runs. Emily Huntley went one inning, striking out two and allowing one hit.

Polzella was 2-for-3 with a home run for Corning, driving in a run and scoring two. Sullivan had a double, an RBI and a run scored.

Daphne Sherman and Teribury had hits. Sullivan struck out five in 5 2/3 innings and Sherman struck out one in an inning. Teribury got the last out.
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PHOTOS BY BRIAN FEES.