JEFFERSONVILLE, NY – Leave it to Catskills weather to make local sports a challenge.

On Wednesday, April 27, the varsity softball game between the home team Lady Bulldogs and the Lady Lions of Chapel Field Christian High School was played during a series of mercifully short-lived bone-chilling snow squalls that surged across Lauren Hughson Memorial Field.

Without a doubt, the “play of the game” was in the bottom of the final frame when Kaylee DiBiase slid across the plate to win it 10-9 for Sullivan West, breaking a 9-9 tie.

The junior narrowly escaped getting tagged out at home by Chapel Field’s pitcher.

“We’re improving a lot and the girls are playing hard,” said Anthony Durkin, coach of the Lady Bulldogs softball squad (3-2). “It was an exciting game for us to win.”

Riley Ernst, a 17-year-old fourth-season varsity starter on the mound, talked about mental toughness and that errors can make you stronger.

“It was amazing, but we let ‘em back in,” she said of the win. “We had a couple of mental errors, but that’s part of the game. Overall, I’m really proud of our team and what we’ve done this year so far.”

On the subject of shrugging off mistakes on the field, Ernst said, “Mental toughness, especially in softball, is part of the game… if you make a mental error and you start to break down, you just have to move on.”

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