By Kim J. Harmon

Sometimes the complexion of a game can change soooo fast.

Nursing a narrow lead in the first round of a CIAC Class LL state tournament game with Shelton, the Newtown High School softball team – which had struck out 12 times and had the benefit of just two hits all afternoon – saw its 2003 season come to a shockingly swift end.

With an amalgam of six hits and four Newtown errors (three physical, one mental) Shelton scored seven times over the final two innings to capture a 7-2 win and the Lady Nighthawks – who had been similarly dismissed in the quarterfinals of the South-West Conference tournament last week – finished up 14-7.

“It’s not as if they hit us all over the park,” said head coach Jay Edwards. “A couple of dinks and dunks. What are you going to do? It just wasn’t our day.”

It looked as if it would be their day, though, especially after they narrowly averted disaster in the top of the fourth inning.

The ‘Hawks had taken a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the second (Caitlyn Elf singled, stole second, and then came all the way around the score when Stacey Gordon’s bunt led to a throwing error) and was about to see it blow up in their faces when Shelton loaded the bases in the top of the fourth with no one out.

Showing some grit, though, the ‘Hawks refused to let it happen. Second baseman Nicole Mangarella (five assists on the day) somehow managed to control a bounding ball that glanced off the heal of her glove before throwing a strike to Ashley Ferris at home for the first put out. Pitcher Lisa Morgan induced the next batter to pop up to Ferris and Trina Ramsdell finished off the threat by throwing a runner out from the hole at shortstop.

‘The ‘Hawks survived that threat.

But not the next one.

Shelton collected a pair of one-out singles in the top of the sixth and then scored on a fielder’s choice grounder that should have resulted in an out. Two more singles and an infield out plated three more runs for Shelton and the visitors had a 4-1 lead.

The ‘Hawks scratched out a run in the bottom of the frame. Christina Wolf lashed a line drive to center for a single and then stole second. A groundout by Ferris put Wolf on third and she then scored on a throwing error.

The ‘Hawks had always had trouble manufacturing runs, but two didn’t seem like too much to try and get back.

Unfortunately, five was.

Shelton scored three more times in the top of the seventh (taking advantage of three errors and one wild pitch) to put the game away. In the bottom of the frame, the ‘Hawks were set down 1-2-3 to end the 2003 season.