NHS Softball Team Keeps Rolling

By Andy Hutchison

That 0-2 start to the season is long in the past. The Newtown High School softball improved to 12-3 and improved to 9-0 in the South-West Conference with a 7-3 win over Bethel on Saturday and a 5-1 win at Pomperaug on Monday.

The Hawks bounced back from that tough-to-swallow 2-1 setback to Trumbull on April 22 with back-to-back convincing wins — 13-0 over Notre Dame-Fairfield and 14-0 over Immaculate on April 24 and 30, respectively. Newtown’s Stacy Broughton improved to 4-0 and lowered her earned run average to 0.30 in a five-inning, shortened-because-of-the-12-run-mercy-run win over Notre Dame. Nora Lynn Shimko went 3-for-4 and belted a home run, and Kelly Tenney was 2-for-3 with three batted in to lead the offense.

In the win over Immaculate, another five-inning mercy-rule affair, Katie Bowen struck out seven and allowed just one hit to improve to 3-0 this spring. Bowen aided her own cause with a three-RBI performance at the plate. Joanna Barry was 3-for-4, including a triple, with three runs scored and two batted in. Shimko was 3-for-3 with a double, Katie Schmidt was 3-for-4 with a home run and two RBI and Caitlin Cosgrove was 2-for-2 with an RBI and run scored.

Newtown was tested by New Milford in a May 1 home game. After nipping New Milford 2-1 in the first meeting of the season, the Hawks won another close one, 3-0 this time around. Jenna Legros tossed a three-hitter with eight strikeouts and the offensive support was provided by the long ball. Bowen, who hit a two-run shot, and Schmidt both hit home runs to account for the scoring.

In the win over Bethel, Legros fanned ten batters and allowed six hits. Bowen was 3-for-4 with another homer, a double, and two RBI. Shimko knocked in two and scored a pair, Melissa Fracker doubled and Christine Beck tripled home the go-ahead run to snap a 3-3 tie and scored an insurance marker for the Hawks.

Broughton pushed her season record to a perfect 5-0 in the win over Pomperaug.

Heading into this week’s action, Bowen leads the team with a .511 batting average and Shimko is hitting .442. Bowen has a .542 on base percentage and Ashley Kuligowski has a .511 on base percentage (she has walked a team-high 11 times). The team’s collective ERA is 0.78. Legros leads the pitching staff with 67 strikeouts in 48 innings.

This week, the Nighthawks were scheduled to play consecutive games against the only teams to beat them. After visiting Bunnell on Wednesday, the Hawks are slated to host Lauralton Hall Friday at 7 pm. They host Brookfield Monday afternoon, visit Stratford on May 14 and cap the regular season with a tough test under the lights at home against Masuk on May 15 (at Treadwell Park at 7 pm).