Madison Softball Falls to Kittatinny in Season Opener

In its season opener, the Madison High School softball team fell at home to the Kittatinny Cougars, 9-8. The Dodgers scored three runs in the bottom of the seventh to come within one run of tying the game, but Kittatinny's pitcher Brianne Morlock clamped down and put up her sixth strikeout of the game, stopping the Dodgers in their tracks.

"I was so relieved," Morlock said. "But I knew I had my team behind me, so if they hit it they'd be there to back me up."

The game had been close until the top of the fourth inning, when Kittatinny scored five runs to take the lead, 8-4. Going into the fourth, the Dodgers held the lead, and every inning had appeared to be evenly matched. Both teams were hitting, both teams were scoring, but in the fourth Kittatinny charged ahead.

"It was mental errors that cost us the game," said Madison head coach Hector Martinez. "We clear those mental errors and the game could have been ours."

In an unexpected move, sophomore Nicole Iannarone came in to pitch after the Dodgers gave up four in the fourth. She finished the game for Madison, allowing only one run in three innings.

"At first I was very nervous," Iannarone said. "I did not expect to pitch at all today."

In her first inning Kittatinny went down one-two-three, and Iannarone put up her first of two strikeouts. After the game, Martinez called her the player of the game.

Madison junior shortstop Nikki Caruso hit well, twice scorching the ball to the right field fence. The first time it rolled under for a ground-rule double, the second time was during the most crucial moment of the game, a hit that appeared, at first, to be heading over the fence.

"I thought it was over, but when I realized it wasn't, I was just glad people were on base," Caruso said.

Her hit scored a run with zero outs in the bottom of the seventh. Caruso was the eighth Dodger run of the game as well later in the inning on a passed ball.

"I definitely thought we could have come back then, but we could have come back earlier as well," Caruso said.

The Dodgers hit consistently throughout the game, with most players ending up on base at some point in the game. Defensively, however, the team struggled against a Kittatinny team that was hitting the ball hard, but hitters on both teams were crushing the ball.

The Dodgers are coming off a winning season last year, but most of their star players graduated. This year, many of the starters are young–their inexperience was apparent from some of the errors made against Kittatinny–but if they can keep hitting, and minimize mistakes, they could put together a strong season.

Up next for the Dodgers is a home game on Saturday at 11 a.m. against the Butler Bulldogs.