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Taunton captures third straight D1 title by beating Central Catholic
AMHERST— Not just once, not just twice, make that three years in a row that Taunton have won it all in MIAA Division I softball.
The No. 3 Tigers (24-1) completed their highly coveted three-peat Sunday afternoon by taking down No. 1 Central Catholic (23-2) 6-1, becoming only the fourth MIAA softball program to win three state titles in a row and the first to do it since Turners Falls took home the Division II title in 2015, 2016 and 2017.
“They Thad a goal in mind all year long and we finally just got to a point where we were like ‘oh my goodness this goal might actually work,’” Taunton coach Michelle Raposo said. “They came out headstrong and were ready to play. They knew that they weren’t going to get outplayed, that the only chance of it going against us was if we let them outplay us and they weren’t letting that happen. They went out, they played their game offensively and defensively and came out strong in the end. We had a couple hiccups throughout the game but they didn’t let it tear them down. They’ve come back stronger and stronger after each game so I couldn’t be prouder of this team.”
Leading the way in the circle once again for the Tigers was Sam Lincoln as she went all seven innings giving up a run on a hit and three walks while striking out seven.
“Sam still has that injured finger, so to come out and pitch with that kind of command, she did a hell of a job,” Raposo said. “She goes in determined. She doesn’t want anybody to hit the ball off of her so she does everything that she can and she knows that if she misses a pitch and someone makes contact that the defense is behind her to make that play, so her confidence in the mound is really good.”
For Lincoln, the trick was approaching the game just like she would any other start.
“I treated it the same as any game we’ve played all year,” Lincoln said. “I wasn’t trying to make my nerves go up because it’s the state championship game, so I just stayed relaxed and pitch the game I know how to.”
At the plate, Ava Venturelli led the way for the Tigers in her final high school game as the University of Louisville-bound center fielder went two-for-two with two runs, three RBIs, a pair of walks and a key three run home run. UMass Boston-bound first baseman Hayley Krockta went two-for-four with a pair of RBIs while Brooke Aldrich went one-for-three with a run, Southern New Hampshire-bound catcher Kaysie DeMoura went one-for-four with a run and Bridgewater State-bound left fielder Kyleah Plumb and Bella Bourque each had a run.
“Our goal is to score first,” Raposo said. “If we score first and stay up then we’re just going to keep climbing because they get a little anxious and a little nervous more in the sense that they want to produce first, so once we got that run in from Brooke, there was no stopping us.”
Taunton got on the board in the top of the second when Aldrich hit a one out triple then scored off a throwing error to third to give the Tigers the early advantage.
An inning later, Plumb was hit by a pitch and Bourque was walked to put runners on first and second, setting up Venturelli who delivered as she sent the ball flying over the center field fence to give Taunton the 4-0 lead.
“I haven’t been on exactly my past few games,” Venturelli said. “I’ve been doing okay but not (at my usual level) and my teammates picked me up every time I was down, so to be able to help them out in this game and push them over the edge was awesome.”
“I knew when Ava hit that home run it just solidified how well our offense was going to produce for us, so we were all behind her,” Raposo said.
The Tigers tagged on two more runs in the fifth as Venturelli was intentionally walked and DeMoura doubled to put two runners in scoring position, with the pair coming in to score the next at-bat courtesy of a Krockta double to the left center gap.
Lincoln held the Raiders hitless through the first five and two-thirds innings before with two outs, Amelia Ovalles singled to shallow center to drive in Jillian Clements, who was pinch-running for Olivia Moekel after she was hit by a pitch, making it 6-1 before Lincoln retired the final four Central Catholic batters she faced to seal the deal on the three-peat.
Julia Malowicz was credited with the loss for the Raiders after going four and two-thirds innings giving up six runs on six hits and three walks while striking out five and Elisabeth Kearny tossed the remaining two and a third shutout innings giving up two hits and a walk while striking out two. Ovalles went one-for-three with the lone Central Catholic hit.
The win marks Taunton’s eighth overall Division I state title after wins in 1997, 2002, 2003, 2007, 2018, 2021 and 2022, tying them for second all-time for most MIAA softball state titles with Bishop Fenwick, who won seven of theirs in a row from 1990-1996, and two behind Turners Falls at 10, with the Thunder being denied an 11th title this season as they fell 10-2 to rivals Greenfield in the Division V championship game Friday.
“As a player, when we won our first title and then the second one in a row, I never thought this moment would happen again,” Raposo said. “To be a part of this as the head coach is impeccable. I can’t even describe it in words. It’s an amazing feeling that I get to share this with my daughter (Mia Torres) and I get to coach her, I just can’t describe it.”
To be able to share her love of the game with others who feel the same, including her own daughter, is another thing Raposo doesn’t take for granted.
“I’ve loved softball my entire life, so to be able to coach girls with that same passion and be able to feed that passion in them and my daughter, I can’t even describe it,” Raposo said. “I had that same relationship with my father (Joseph Raposo) who was one of my coaches as a kid, so I know what it’s like to have a parent in the dugout with you. I know she felt a lot of pressure throughout the season but she didn’t let it wear her down, so it means a lot to have her here with me. She performs at her best and she’s doing the best she can.”
For DeMoura, the win marked the successful completion of a goal she set out for her and her teammates following last year’s title win over Peabody.
“It’s been my goal since we were here last year,” DeMoura said. “I said ‘three-peat, what’s next? Let’s keep going,’ and it means absolutely everything to be able to have won three of them and leave high school on a high note.”
DeMoura along with fellow senior captains Krockta, Plumb and Venturelli will now all depart Taunton, along with fellow seniors Emmanuel-bound second baseman Mia Fernandes and Sacred Heart-bound outfielder Morgan Fitzgerald, though both pitchers Lincoln and Cate Larson as well as Bourque, Aldrich and Torres among others highlights some of the returning talent the Tigers can count on next spring.
“We are graduating a lot of headstrong seniors that command a lot from the younger players, so we hope that the leadership they’ve presented throughout the season passes on to the next leaders that come up, so if we continue to pass on that leadership within the younger kids, we’ll do just fine,” Raposo said.
Taunton Daily Gazette sports reporter Cameron Merritt can be reached at [email protected]. You can follow him on Twitter at @CamMerritt_News. Support local journalism by purchasing a digital or print subscription to the Taunton Daily Gazette today.
