Broderick, Wilton-Lyndeborough shut down Lin-Wood

WILTON – Sam Broderick did a little bit of everything Thursday to help the Wilton-Lyndeborough softball team pick up a 2-0 win over Lin-Wood.

With the Warriors’ bats taking some time to heat up this spring, they needed everything they could get.

Broderick pitched a no-hitter, striking out 10 to go with two walks and a hit batter, and drove in both runs for the Warriors on two doubles. W-L knocked out eight hits, but left nine runners on base, a trend that carried over from the Warriors’ season-opening win against Pittsfield last Monday.

“I don’t know what the problem is,” W-L coach Denny Claire said. “We’re getting plenty of opportunities. How many did we leave on? Nine on base and we didn’t get them in. That’s the big difference. All we need is one hit and we didn’t get it. We only have a couple of girls hitting the ball consistently. Why? I can’t really explain it.”

While Broderick’s RBIs were big, it might have been two plays she made in the field that put W-L (2-0 in Division IV) over the top.

With one out in the top of the sixth inning, Lin-Wood’s Marcy Regelado reached on a two-base error and stole third. Marilyn Bearden followed with a walk before Lynn Tilden bunted a ball back to the circle.

Broderick fielded the bunt cleanly and looked toward Regelado at third. But instead of throwing to first, Broderick faked in that direction and turned back to third, where Regelado was already halfway down the line.

The Warriors got her in a rundown and eventually Regelado was tagged out for the second out of the inning. Broderick then struck out Kate McCrohan to end the inning.

“Her and I talked about it,” Lin-Wood coach Tom Bentley said. “I said the mistake you made was going too far toward home. Had she waited, she has incredible speed, she can steal any base at any time.”

The Lumberjacks (0-1) got the leadoff runner to third in the seventh inning, but back-to-back strikeouts pushed Lin-Wood to its final out. With two outs, Kelsey O’Rourke made solid contact but hit the ball right back to Broderick, who threw to first to end the game.

“That last play up the middle was a great play,” Claire said. “That ball was hit hard and it was a base hit if it was anywhere but right at her. She got her glove down quick.”

“Six inches to the right or the left and we score that run which would have made it closer,” Bentley said.

The Warriors got on the board in the bottom of the first inning. Deanna Davidson started things with a one-out single and Broderick followed by drilling a double through a hole in the infield, scoring Davidson from first. Katie Day followed with a single, but back-to-back pop outs ended the threat.

W-L got the leadoff runner to third in the second and had runners on second and third in the third inning, but ended up with nothing to show for it.

Andrea Heck opened the bottom of the fifth with a bunt single, and after stealing second, scored on a double by Broderick that hit off the fence in center field. The Warriors had a chance for more in the sixth, loading the based with one out, but they couldn’t get any more.

“It should have been a much bigger score,” Claire said. “We had the people on base. We’re not doing much at the plate right now.”

W-L returns to the field on Friday when it hosts Newmarket at 4 p.m.