UNION SPRINGS — Paityn Delaney fanned 16 batters in a complete game Tuesday as Union Springs softball won in walk-off fashion in the Section IV, Class C quarterfinals against Southern Cayuga, 5-4. After winning both regular-season matchups against Southern Cayuga by at least nine runs, the Wolves didn't secure the third matchup until some late-inning heroics. In the bottom of the seventh, and with the score deadlocked at four, Ella Dougherty stepped up to the plate and smacked an RBI single to the gap in left field to score Delaney from second.
With the win now in the rearview mirror, Union Springs coach Jim Bona hopes the victory can springboard his team into its home matchup against Bainbridge-Guilford in the semifinals on Thursday. “This was the game we needed for the next one, and the next one is going to be just as tough of a test,” he told The Citizen. “They were ready and they were prepared for the challenge, and they hung in there in the bottom of the seventh.
For the youngness we have, that's huge. That gives us a lot of confidence going into Thursday.” Southern Cayuga's Bristol Hill reacts to a called third strike against Union Springs in the Section IV, Class C semifinals at Union Springs High School.
The Wolves, who fielded no seniors this season, pounced early in the first inning. After a single and stolen base from Grace Chalupnicki, Dougherty drove her in with an RBI double to put the first run on the board. Katelyn Herrling then returned the favor wi.
