JEFFERSONVILLE, NY — As the varsity softball season draws to a close, the Lady Bulldogs of Sullivan West 8-6) are one win away from nailing down a berth in the upcoming sections.

But on Tuesday, May 7 they had to postpone that hope for a bit as they lost 4-2 against Tri-Valley’s Lady Bears (10-2).

In the opening frame, the visiting Lady Bears showed their mettle as they posted three runs by Jenna Carmody, Avery Carrier and Daniella Bell. In the sixth, they added another run by Angelia Raykoff, who scored on a single by Abbigail Mentnech to make it a 4-0 ballgame.

In the bottom of the final frame, Sullivan West’s Mckala Chevalier stepped up to the plate to knock in RBIs by second baseman Sam Hellerer and third baseman Jocelyn Doyle to end the game.

Anthony Durkin gave up chasing snakes for the afternoon to coach the Lady Bulldogs and say a few words about the season of softball swats.

“We’re having a great season, and need one more win to get into sectionals,” he said. Durkin noted that in the game against Tri-Valley, their number-one pitcher “was a little tight” so they sent their number two hurler, Mary Chellis, up to the mound.

“She did a fine job, but they have a good team… scored three runs in the first, and we had two errors… and left a slew on bases.”

The Lady Bulldogs are led on the field by a trio of upper-class captains: Elizabeth Reeves (pitcher), Nicole Reeves (catcher) and Karlee Diehl (first base).

Commenting on the team leaders, Durkin said, “They are role models for the young kids, and for the last two seasons the team has been amazing to coach, a lot of times without input from us… It makes it a fun team to coach.”

Kim Costa helms the Lady Bears varsity softball squad, which is led on the field by junior Jenna Carmody and by Emily Rusin, a senior.

“The season is building nicely,” she said, despite “a couple of little early hiccups” in their opening game losses. Those turned into “good learning experiences for the girls” after they struggled at the plate and made “a lot of defensive mistakes” in games against Chester and Port Jervis.

But with a 10-2 record after the win over Sullivan West, it seems as if the Lady Bears learned some hard-won lessons from a few mistakes.

For more photos, visit www.riverreporter.com/sports.

Since picking up a camera and pen as a freelance photojournalist, Ted Waddell has received 21 awards from the New York Press Association. His most recent recognition was the Phil Pines Award from the Monticello-Goshen Chapter of the United States Harness Writer’s Association in 2022. Waddell is a member of the International Freelancer Photographers Organization.