Sports

Reilly Leads New Canaan Softball’s FCIAC Postseason Honors

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In a fitting coda to a brilliant four-year varsity softball career with the Rams, New Canaan’s Ali Reilly was selected to the All-FCIAC First Team. Reilly – who also made the First Team last year – had another outstanding season in the circle for New Canaan, striking out 114 batters in 95 1/3 innings pitched with an ERA of 3.23. The Babson-bound Reilly also helped herself at the plate, leading the team with a .361 batting average with 3 doubles, 3 triples and 16 RBI. Her performance in New Canaan’s 2-1 win over rival Darien was the highlight of New Canaan’s 11-11 season. “Ali worked hard and it’s another great accomplishment to add to her high school career,” New Canaan head coach Danielle Simoneau told NewCanaanite.com.

Sports

New Canaan Softball Shocks Darien, Solidifies Position in FCIAC

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What a difference a day makes. 24 hours after Tuesday’s potentially devastating 7-5 loss to a sub-.500 Trinity Catholic squad, the New Canaan Rams softball team came back and stunned the FCIAC world Wednesday afternoon at Waveny’s Orchard Field with a dramatic 2-1 upset win over #2 ranked Darien. “That’s softball,” New Canaan head coach Danielle Simoneau told NewCanaanite.com. “That’s why it’s so frustrating when you make careless mistakes because you know you’re better at the game than what we showed. But they came back today and proved we are better than what we showed.”

The game featured two of the best pitchers in the FCIAC and more than lived up to its billing.

Sports

2 Days, 3 Wins for New Canaan Softball

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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.

Sports

Despite Dropping First Two Games, Plenty of Bright Spots for New Canaan Rams Softball

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Over the first two games of the 2014 season, the New Canaan Rams softball team saw some great pitching, solid hitting and adept fielding. The only issue was…they couldn’t put it all together in one game. On Thursday the Rams lost the season opener at Fairfield Ludlowe 1-0, as they could only muster 4 hits for hard-luck starter Ali Reilly. And in the home opener the following afternoon, the Rams dropped a 9-5 decision to Greenwich in a game that saw its fair share of hits–including a home run by freshman Molly Keshin–but also its fair share of errors. “You expect things like this,” Rams head coach Danielle Simoneau said following the Greenwich game.

Sports

New Canaan Softball 2014 Preview: Re-armed and Rebuilding

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After guiding the 2013 New Canaan Rams to the first FCIAC title in school history, one might think the head coach would be content to rest on her laurels, especially heading into a rebuilding year after losing all but two regular starters to graduation. That said–if you know Danielle Simoneau, such a thought would never cross your mind. Heading into her fourth year at the helm, Simoneau is looking at the 2014 season with excitement and a hint of that competitive fire. These qualities helped make her one of the best softball players in the history of the FCIAC while pitching for Westhill in the early 1990’s, and they’re qualities Simoneau will hope to pass along to her young team. “It’s a challenge,” Simoneau told NewCanaanite.com.