On Wednesday, April 23, Kent’s varsity softball team faced off against Suffield Academy in what proved to be a tough battle, but ultimately a definitive win for the Lions.

Making their way onto the field, the girls were energetic and ready to go. They played hard from the very start, but by the second inning, Suffield had grabbed the upper hand. Despite the 0-0 score, there were consecutive innings where no Kent girl made it to base.

With a strong showing in the third inning, Kent pulled into the lead with runs by Jessica Greene ’21 and Teagan Graham ’21, but Suffield’s momentum was not broken.

The opposing team continued to play well, picking up a run in the fourth inning and two in the fifth, while Kent still struggled to make it to base. Captain Jane Malafronte ’19 says this was “a moment where I was nervous if we could come back and fight this team.”

In the bottom of the sixth inning, a walk by Sarah Smith ’20 finally broke Suffield’s slight upper hand. That walk was followed by singles by Sascha Botero ’21, Greene, and a walk by Graham. This brought Smith back to home, tying the game 3-3, and loading the bases. A strong hit to the outfield by Morgan Lee ’22 allowed all the Kent girls to score.

Finally having taken control of the game, the team continued their domination in the seventh inning, with runs by five more girls, bringing the final score to 12-3. A strong showing by pitcher Graham, whose power and speed was evident from the sidelines, and resilience by Botero, who was hit by the ball twice but continued, epitomized the grit of this team.

Malafronte credits their win to “the energy and support of our bench [which] gave the player at bat confidence, so they were able to perform greatly at the plate.”

The sound of the ball cracking on the bat was often broken by the shouts of the players, especially Gia Orsino ’19, whose cries of “let’s go ladies!” echoed throughout the game.

The next thing for the team, according to Malafronte, is “for us to work on our technique and skill both defensively and offensively. We’ve been striving to go far in the league this year and everyone has made it their goal to elevate their game and improve their work ethic, and I think it has been clearly seen from the progress we’ve made throughout the season.”