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Sports

Fazio's Pitching Leads Cougars' Softball to Victory over Madison

The Cougars rebounded after losing their last three games.

The Chatham Cougar softball team had a rough weekend. It started with catcher Alex St. Romain getting hit by a pitch on Friday night, rendering her unable to play until Monday. In that time, the Cougars lost three straight, falling to Jefferson on Friday night, Morris Hills Saturday afternoon, then Morristown Saturday evening. All three losses were by one run, and their record quickly went from 6-1 to 6-4.

On Monday, St. Romain returned and so did Chatham's winning ways. They handily defeated the Madison Dodgers, 8-1, behind outstanding pitching from Amanda Fazio and offensive production from most of the team at their new field at Chatham Middle School. There was a dedication ceremony before the game.

"I warmed up throwing pretty hard, and it felt good to be back with Alex," said Fazio. "Especially after losing three games in 24 hours, it felt good to win."

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St. Romain went 2 for 4 and scored a run after missing all three of Chatham's weekend games.

"I hate sitting on the bench, and it felt good to get back in and help my team win," said St. Romain.

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The Cougars got on top of the Dodgers early, scoring four runs in the bottom of the first, and it started with a hit from St. Romain, who scored the first run of the game. Shortstop Kendall Davies walked and Fazio knocked St. Romain in with a single. After singles from center fielder Cara Delsandro, third baseman Jenna Ioffredo and first baseman Kelly Winans, Chatham's first inning rally was ended.

"We got our catcher back, and had some big hits," said Chatham coach Alexis Davies. "I knew we would bounce back. I didn't have any doubts."

The fourth inning was almost as productive as the first for the Chatham offense—a Madison error put Fazio on base and left the window open for the Cougars to start a two-out rally. They took advantage of the situation, and Caroline Murphy hit a double that scored Fazio. Then Delsandro hit a triple, scoring Murphy. A passed ball brought Delsandro home, giving Chatham three runs total in the fourth inning, all with two outs.

"I was so proud of myself—I haven't hit well in awhile," said Delsandro. "I just thought … I'm gonna hit it. I had more confidence. I'm really happy getting out of my slump."

Besides unstoppable offense, Fazio was almost unhittable for Madison, striking out eleven and only giving up five hits. The Dodgers' hitters went down looking in five of those eleven strikeouts.

With the win, Chatham improves to 7-4 going into its Wednesday game against Morris Catholic. First pitch at Chatham Middle School is at 4 p.m.

Highlights

Alex St. Romain – 2 for 4, 1 run scored

Amanda Fazio – 1 for 2, walk, 1 run scored, 1 RBI, 11 strike-outs

Caroline Murphy – 1 for 3, 1 RBI, double

Elke Luria – 1 for 1, 1 run scored

Cara Delsandro – 2 for 3, triple, walk, 1 RBI, 3 runs scored

Jenna Ioffredo – 1 for 3, walk, 2 RBI, 1 run scored

Kelly Winans – 2 for 4, triple, 1 RBI

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