By Rob Potter
MONGAUP VALLEY — Cooper Paint took an early lead and kept extending its advantage every inning to record a 22-1 victory over Holiday Mountain Ski & Fun Park on Monday evening in a Sullivan County Women’s Softball League (SCWSL) game at Edward M. Collins Memorial Park in Mongaup Valley.
Cooper Paint grabbed a 3-0 advantage in the top of the first inning. Leadoff batter Emily Drobysh singled to center field and scored moments later on a single by Jen Wright.
Megan Drobysh recorded the team’s second run of the game when Jackie Litwak reached base on a fielder’s choice. Diana Sherman then singled to center field to allow Wright to cross home plate.
In the bottom of the first, Holiday Mountain scored a run to cut its deficit to 3-1. Rebekha Wilcox led off the frame with an infield single. She came in to score when the next batter, her sister Mardette Wilcox, doubled to left field.
Holiday Mountain had at least two runners on base for the rest of the inning, but unfortunately could not come up with a hit to enable them to cross home plate.
Cooper Paint extended its lead to 14-1 by adding 11 runs in the top of the second. Erin Shuart walked to start the inning and later scored when her mother, Pat Shuart, tripled. Emily Drobysh then hit a two-run, inside-the-park home run to center field.
Moments later, Wright belted a two-run, inside-the-park home run to left field.
Kristen Sarno, Saritza Vazquez, Courtney Kashan and Ally McCarthy all had RBI singles and Erin Shuart added an RBI double as Cooper Paint took its 13-run advantage.
In the top of the third, Wright and Litwak both crossed the plate on a double by Sherman to give Cooper Paint a 16-1 lead.
Cooper Paint scored the last six runs of the game in the top of the fourth. Erin Shuart led off with a triple and scored when McCarthy singled to left field. A double by Megan Drobysh allowed McCarthy to cross home plate.
The next batter, Wright, singled to center field to score Erin Drobysh and Megan Drobysh.
Litwak then ripped a two-run, inside-the-park home run to left field to make it a 22-1 game.
After Holiday Mountain batted in the bottom of the fourth, the game ended due to the SCWSL’s 20-run rule.
Holiday Mountain, a SCWSL “B” Division team, is now 11-6 on the season.
With the win, Cooper Paint finished the regular season with a record of 16-5. Cooper Paint will be one of the four SCWSL “A” Division teams in the upcoming playoffs, but the team is not sure where it will finish in the regular season standings.
Charlie’s Angels finished first in the division, while L&B Tack took second place. Once all rainout games have been made up, Cooper Paint and Klein & Sons Logging will know which team finished in third place and which placed fourth.