Playing three games and 25 innings over two days had New Canaan’s head coach Danielle Simoneau feeling like she was in the summer tournament circuit as opposed to FCIAC play. Scheduling conflicts and rainouts made the logjam a somewhat unwelcome necessity.
That said, when all was said and done, all that mattered to Simoneau were the three games the Rams added to the win column.
After an 11-inning 4-3 marathon win over Danbury on Friday, the Rams swept a doubleheader on Saturday–beating Norwalk 15-9, and McMahon 4-3.
“It feels great anytime you win,” Simoneau told NewCanaanite.com. “They’ve been working hard and fighting hard. They deserve it.”
The three wins put New Canaan (7-5, 7-3 in the FCIAC) right in the mix for the conference tournament and one win away from clinching a berth in the CIAC state tournament–two goals that might have seemed like a bit of a stretch earlier this season.
“It would be a great morale boost for the team knowing that we have a shot in the postseason,” senior captain Ali Reilly said. “I know there are a couple of tough games coming up too, so it will be a test of character.”
If the past three games are any indication, the Rams will be up to the task.
New Canaan jumped out to a quick lead against Danbury. With one out in the top of the 1st, freshman Rachel Keshin was hit by a pitch and advanced to third on two passed balls. Junior Jamie Schlim singled to right, scoring Keshin for a 1-0 lead.
Molly Keshin rips a base hit against Norwalk.
In the 3rd, Keshin drew a 2-out walk and came around to score on sister Molly Keshin’s RBI double. Reilly led off the 4th inning with a single and moved to third on an error. Sophomore Claire Conley drove in Reilly with an RBI grounder to second base, giving the Rams a 3-0 lead.
Danbury scored a run in the bottom of the 4th and tied the game with 2 runs in the 6th. The game remained deadlocked until the top of the 11th when Molly Keshin hit a one-out single to left. Schlim followed with an infield hit putting runners at second and third. Reilly then stepped up and lined a single to RF, scoring Keshin for a 4-3 lead.
Schlim–who came on in relief of Reilly in the 10th–retired the Hatters in order in the bottom of the 11th to earn the win for New Canaan. Molly Keshin led the Rams offense going 3-for-4 with an RBI and a run. Reilly went 3-for-5 and also scored once and drove in a run. Schlim went 2-for-5 with an RBI.
Rachel Keshin fires to first.
The Rams started quickly again in Saturday’s slugfest against Norwalk. Consecutive walks to senior captain Colette Pellegrini and Rachel Keshin set the table for Molly Keshin, who ripped a triple to deep LF. Schlim reached on an infield hit, scoring Keshin. Reilly then drove a triple to deep CF to plate Schlim, then came in to score herself on freshman Molly Rochlin’s single. When the dust settled, the Rams had scored 6 runs.
New Canaan added two more runs in the 2nd. The Keshin twins both singled to lead off the inning. After a double play erased one of the base runners, Reilly hit another triple to CF, and came in to score on Conley’s single, extending the Rams lead to 8-1.
Ali Reilly in the circle.
Norwalk countered with two runs in the top of the 3rd, but New Canaan would answer back in the fourth. Molly Keshin led off with a home run–her 3rd of the season–giving New Canaan a 9-3 lead. Schlim, Reilly and Conley loaded the bases for Rochlin, who drove in Schlim with a sharp single to left. The Rams tacked on an additional unearned run later in the inning as Pellegrini reached on an error, scoring Reilly for an 11-3 lead.
New Canaan scored another run in the 5th on a Schlim sac fly. In the 6th freshman Eliza Haney singled and came around to score a Norwalk error to make it 13-4 New Canaan. The Rams added two more runs to extend to a 15-4 lead.
Norwalk plated 5 runs in the 7th inning, but it did little other than make the game seem closer than it actually was, ultimately falling 15-9. Ali Reilly led the New Canaan charge, going 4-for-5 at the plate with 4 RBI. Molly Keshin also went 4-for-5 with 3 RBI and 5 runs scored. Schlim struck out 9 Norwalk batters to improve to 5-1 on the season.
In the nightcap against McMahon, the Rams found themselves in an unfamiliar early hole, trailing the Senators 3-0 heading into the bottom of the 3rd. With one out, Pellegrini reached on an error and moved to second after Rachel Keshin was hit by a pitch.
Jamie Schlim slides home against McMahon.
Molly Keshin then ripped a single to right, scoring Pellegrini. Keshin took off for second as McMahon missed the cutoff, and when the throw came down to second, Rachel Keshin scored from third. With two out Reilly stepped in and drove a double to right, scoring Keshin with the tying run.
New Canaan pulled ahead in the 5th. Jamie Schlim led off with a triple and scored on Claire Conley’s sac fly.
Meanwhile, Reilly was cruising along, in search of her first win of the season.
Then Mother Nature intervened.
After a delay of 30 minutes due to lighting, the game resumed in the top of the 7th just as a torrential downpour started. Reilly struggled at first with the conditions, walking the first two McMahon hitters without throwing a strike.
“I got a little frustrated,” Reilly said. “When I’m frustrated I either lose control or get mad and focus.”
She got mad.
With the tying and go-ahead runs on base, Reilly settled in and promptly struck out the last three batters of the game, capping off an eventful 24 hours for the Rams.
“You try to go out there and throw when it’s raining sideways,” Simoneau said. “It’s almost impossible to keep your hand dry. But sometimes you just gotta suck it up and do what you have to do. And that’s what she (Reilly) did.”
Rachel Keshin led New Canaan at the plate, going 2-for-3 with a run scored. Senior captain Rachel Kortman went 1-for-2 with a walk, while fellow captain Colette Pellegrini went 1-3 with a run and a stolen base for the Rams, who seem to be finding their stride at just the right time.
“It’s great,” said Reilly, who finished with 12 strikeouts for the game and lowered her season ERA to 2.70. “Everything is kind of coming together and we’re learning from every game. It’s all falling in place.”