Sports

St. Vincent's Girls Softball on a Roll

The team improves its record to 8-1 and secures a playoff spot for fourth consecutive year.

St. Vincent de Paul girls softball is on a roll. With a couple strong games in the last week, the team improved its record to 8-1 and clinched a spot in the playoffs for the fourth straight year. St. Paul is now the No. 2 seed in the Greater New Haven Parochial Athletic League (GNHPAL) softball standings.

On May 9, the Eagles traveled to Milford to face St. Gabriel and came away with a 4-2 victory. The game was a pitching duel between Erin McCann and Aubrey Bepko of St. Gabriel - both went the distance.

McCann racked up 11 strikeouts, gave up three walks and two hits in the closest game for the Eagles this year. All of the Eagles offense came in the first inning when McCann and Laura Anderson walked and Captain Angela Ranciato drove them in on a single. Ranciato's hit was followed by a two-RBI single by fifth grader Alexis Esposito.

Find out what's happening in East Havenwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

On May 13, offense was the name of the game in this slugfest that put St. Vincent on top 17-10 over St. Rita’s Green Team.

St. Vincent jumped out to a 6-1 lead by the second inning, but the always unpredictable St. Rita’s fired right back by getting six runs in the bottom half of the frame, taking a 7-6 lead. Captain’s Natalie Sheehan and Angela Ranciato took the Eagles on their backs and carried the team back. Sheehan went 3 for 4 with a run scored and two RBIs while Ranciato was 3-4 with a triple, walk, stolen base and two runs scored and three RBIs.

Find out what's happening in East Havenwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

By the fourth inning, it was all Eagles. Alexis Esposito started a six-run inning by driving a triple down the left field line and bringing in two runs. In the top of the sixth, Laura Anderson hit a one-out double, followed by Kaityln Mingione’s first homerun of the year. It was an impressive offensive display as the Eagles continue their march to the Greater New Haven Parochial Athletic League Playoffs.

On May 16 the Eagles' offensive explosion continued, with the team's captains leading the charge. Co-captian Tierney Riccitelli’s bat came alive, as did co-captians Natalie Sheehan and Angela Ranciato, who hit two bombs as she helped deliver a 13-1 victory for St. Vincent. On the mound, McCann delivered nine strikeouts and four walks.

The Eagles finish the regular season May 23 with a game against St. Mary’s at Veterans Field, at 3:45 p.m. The GNHPAL playoffs begin May 31 and run through June 3.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here