By Steve Bigham

NEW FAIRFIELD – The Newtown High School softball team pulled out one of those gotta-have-it kind of wins on Monday afternoon under a hot sun when Lauren Blomberg scored the winning run in the 12th inning to lead the Nighthawks past New Fairfield.

The 7-6, extra-inning win raised the Nighthawks’ South-West Conference record to 2-3 and kept their playoff hopes alive. The season is still young, of course, but the ‘Hawks were on the verge of falling deep into the SWC abyss.

And just when it looked hopeless, this gritty group started to play with a confidence that made all the difference.

Early on, Newtown (3-4 overall) struggled with its fielding, dropped balls, booted grounders and made bad throws. New Fairfield looked as if it might win easily. But Newtown coach Paul LaFrancesca huddled his players together and urged them to stop playing scared.

“New Fairfield scored their three runs all with no outs in the fourth inning,” said coach LaFrancesca. “I called timeout and let the girls know they were playing scared and not playing to win. I urged them to play the game and to not think so much. Right after that, we got 27 outs without making an error. Prior to that we had made five errors in the game.”

Blomberg got things going in the 12th inning after reaching first on a drag bunt. Catcher Heather Morgan then sacrificed Blomberg to second and, thanks to what has become Newtown’s signature play, Blomberg took third as the New Fairfield third baseman was caught off guard. She then scored on an RBI groundout off the bat of Jodi Minalgo.

Newtown pitcher Kristen Caposella then recorded the final three outs to secure the win.

“Cappy was huge,” said coach LaFrancesca. “She pitched all 12 innings. It was nice for her to get this one. Without her gutsy performance, we’re not in this game. They only had one earned run out of the six. That’s saying something.”

Newtown appeared to take control of the game when it scored four runs in the fourth inning. It all started with two outs and nobody on. Right fielder Jessica Omasta singled to shallow centerfield, stole second and came home after second baseman Trina Ramsdell reached on an error. Ramsdell then stole second and third before coming home on an infield hit by Erin Murdoch. Kate Bouteiller then singled, Caposella walked to load the bases and Brittany Hutchison was hit by a pitch to drive in a run. Morgan then walked to plate the fourth run of the inning.

Newtown also scored two runs in the second on singles by Ramsdell and Murdoch, a Bouteiller sacrifice fly and a Caposella single.

But it was the defense and pitching that won this game for Newtown, especially late in the game when New Fairfield put together a couple of major threats. In the sixth, the Rebels had the bases loaded and one out, but Bouteiller threw out the lead runner at the plate from her shortstop position. The final out was recorded on a pop up. In the 10th, New Fairfield had runners on second and third with two outs when Blomberg made a fine play at third to throw out the runner at first.

The Rebels went 1-2-3 in the 11th and 12th innings.

“It was a relief to get the win,” coach LaFrancesca said. “It was almost a must win. We were at that stage where there are five teams that I know are going to make the SWC, so you have six other teams battling for the last three spots. There’s not a lot room for error.”

Foran leads the league at 5-0, while Brookfield, Masuk and Pomperaug are all 5-1. Lauralton Hall is 4-1 and Bunnell is 4-2.

Last Friday, Newtown lost to Pomperaug in extra innings for the second time this season. Caposella’s throwing error in the top of the 10th inning broke open a scoreless tie and the Panthers went on to win, 3-0, under the lights at Treadwell Park. Murdoch, who leads the team with a .385 batting average, went 2-for-3 and managed to reach base safely all four times. The freshman has been a huge addition to the team since getting her first varsity at bat just last week.

Morgan was impressive behind the plate, throwing out all three would-be Pomperaug base stealers.

Newtown earned its first league win of the season April 18 with a 3-1 win over Stratford at home. Caposella allowed just three hits and struck out 10 batters for the win. Hutchison’s two-run single highlighted Newtown’s three-run fifth inning.

The locals were scheduled to face New Milford at home Wednesday before traveling to Jonathan Law in Milford on Friday. Next week, Newtown heads to Masuk in Monroe on Tuesday before coming home to host Notre Dame on Wednesday.