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# Softball Notes: Young pitching talent on display last week in Merrimack-Pinkerton series
- URL: https://www.nh-highschoolsports.com/softball-notes-young-pitching-talent-on-display-last-week-in-merrimack-pinkerton-series/
- Published: 2021-05-01T15:00:15.000Z
- Updated: 2021-05-01T15:00:15.000Z
- Description: Granite Staters are witnessing a youth movement in the pitching circle this spring. It was on full display the week of April 26-30, in Merrimack on Monday and Derry on Wednesday, as Adi Runge and Avery Hui started both games in a home-and-home softball series between Pinkerton Academy and Merrimack
- Author: George Scione
- Tags: Spring Sports, Division I, Division II, Division III, Division IV, Merrimack, notebook, Pinkerton, softball, #wp, #wp-post, #Import 2026-08-18 04:44

Granite Staters are witnessing a youth movement in the pitching circle this spring.

It was on full display the week of April 26-30, in Merrimack on Monday and Derry on Wednesday, as Adi Runge and Avery Hui started both games in a home-and-home softball series between Pinkerton Academy and Merrimack High School. It was a two-game set that saw 43 runs scored - a surprising total for two teams which allowed a combined 26 through the first four games.

The Astros’ offense struggled versus Merrimack freshman Hui in Monday’s 18-8 loss, while the Tomahawks’ offense fell flat in a 15-2 loss against Pinkerton freshman Runge.

Throughout New Hampshire, there are freshman and sophomores making key contributions on their varsity squads. In past seasons, there was a few instances of first- or second-year high schoolers being thrust into the spotlight, but the top tier teams always seemed to be led by an upperclassman in the circle.

This spring, it’s happening in the circle with far more frequency - highlighted by the phenomenal relief work of Winnacunnet sophomore Maddie Eaton, St. Thomas sophomore Ashleigh von der Linden’s strong start, the combined efforts of Concord freshmen Maddy Wachter and Sarah Taylor, Merrimack’s Hui, and Pinkerton’s Runge.

Some may point to the 2020 season being erased as a reason for rosters being more than sprinkled with underclassmen. Not so fast says Pinkerton first-year coach Tom Wall.

“I think you’re just seeing girls who have had a lot more AAU and travel team exposure than in past years being able to compete at higher levels at younger ages,” said Wall, a building and grounds employee at Pinkerton, who has coached softball in Connecticut, North Carolina and now New Hampshire since 1988\. “They’re just more prepared and better trained. They’re physically and mentally ready to step up and fill in any holes a varsity high school team might have a lot earlier than in the past.”

According to Wall, and other coaches statewide, watching Runge work in the pitching circle and at the plate makes outsiders believe they’re watching an upperclassman on the diamond.

“She’s a hard-throwing pitcher,” second-year Merrimack coach Greg Cochrane said of Runge. “I think people are very impressed with her velocity, and she’s also a strong hitter.”

Cochrane doesn’t have to look outside his own roster for an impressive freshman. In Hui, the Tomahawks have exactly what Wall described - a girl who stepped up to fill a hole and has shown the maturity and skill level needed to succeed.

“She’s become our No. 1 out of opportunity,” Cochrane said of Hui. “We had a couple of injuries, and with her will to work hard in practice - changing and adjusting to the game plan we were implementing - she took advantage of her opportunity and has outperformed what I even expected.”

Wall knew he was witnessing something special in these two games.

“Adi throws harder, but (Hui) looked really good out there in both games,” Wall said. “We were just able to get the better of her in that second game, and they got the better of us in the first one. Both girls have really good control of their pitches.”

Still, to see so many younger girls filling starting spots must come as a surprise? Cochrane, like Wall, doesn’t really think age or class level matters any longer.

“If a player is ready to play at the varsity level, it doesn’t matter how old they are,” Cochrane said. “I think there’s some truth to these girls getting into higher levels of play at earlier ages, but I think you’ll always have younger kids who just have it. They are just talented and able to handle the stress competing with and against older girls.

“I think that’s the case with Adi and Avery, and I guess other girls around the state this year.”

### Bouncing Back

Here’s a quick look at a few teams regrouping from slow starts this spring:

- Alvirne High School opened its season with a pair of losses to Adi Runge and Pinkerton Academy (10-8, 5-4). The Broncos have flipped the script in the three games since, beating Nashua South twice (21-1, 12-0) and Nashua North (21–1) in the first of a two-game set that concludes April 30.
- Over in Plaistow, the Timberlane Regional Owls overcame two thumpings courtesy of powerhouse Winnacunnet (14-0, 15-3) to open the season with a pair of wins over Dover (11-6) and Portsmouth (12-0). Timberlane looks to keep its win streak going when Exeter comes to town May 3.
- Division II Hanover struggled out of the gate, dropping both ends of home-and-home series with Division IV’s Sunapee (17-4, 15-3) and Division III’s Mascoma Valley (27-4, 18-4). The Marauders got back on track with a pair of wins over Division III’s Fall Mountain (22-10, 19-11). Hanover has a tough schedule ahead with a divisional two-game set against undefeated Stevens on the horizon, May 3 and 5.
- In Division IV, Epping, which dropped its first two against Newmarket (4-0, 8-6), appears to be reversing course with a three-game win streak over Farmington twice (29-3, 22-3) and Somersworth (13-5). The Blue Devils look to extend that streak to four when they visit Somersworth on May 4.

*To report standout diamond performances, or offer ideas for the softball notebook, send an email to* [*scioneg@gmail.com*](mailto:scioneg@gmail.com)*.*