Par-Troy East softball wastes no time in state Little League opener

CLIFTON – –Erupting for 16 hits and riding the combined three-hitter thrown by Tori Freire and Lil Vidal, Par-Troy East opened the Little League softball state tournament with a decisive 19-0 victory in four innings over Elmora of Elizabeth.

Freire was brilliant through the first three frames, striking out four and allowing two hits. She was also a contributor at the plate, finishing 3-for-4 with double and triple to knock in three runs.

“I was throwing pretty good,” Freire said. “I probably could’ve thrown a little faster, but I did what I needed to do. It helped that we hit the ball well. Everyone hit today. We got a lot of triples, double and it was great. As a pitcher, I like having some runs to work with.”

Freire struck out one in the first inning before allowing a leadoff single to Gabriella Maressa in the second. The next batter, Shannon Griffith, reached on a fielder’s choice when she forced Maressa out at second. Griffith was thrown out stealing second by Par-Troy East catcher Gabby Gennarelli and Freire closed out the inning with a strikeout of Hailey Santos.

Freire fanned two in the third and Vidal, who finished 2-for-4 with a triple and two RBI, allowed one hit and struck out two in the fourth.

“I threw a lot of risers and curves and I felt really good out there. It was great to win this first game and I hope we can carry the vibe,” Freire said.

Par-Troy East sent nine batters to the plate in the first, scoring five runs with the help of two-run doubles from Gennarelli and Lindsey DePetris. Jenna Devens collected two of her three RBI with a double and a single in the second inning when Par-Troy East pushed across seven runs to open a 12-0 advantage. Rachel Volarich contributed to a seven-run outburst in the third with a two-run home run.

“Everything really came together for us,” Par-Troy East coach Bob Devens said. “Our girls came out to play. They’ve been practicing hard and working hard over the last couple of weeks and they were prepared. It feels great to win. If you win a state game, it doesn’t matter if it’s 2-1 or 19-0.”