Diamonds 12U win in Bristol

The Grafton Diamonds 12U team won the 2009 Invitational by the Bay Softball Tournament in Bristol, RI which was held on July 31-Aug 2.  Excelling at all phases of the game, the Diamonds played outstanding team softball to defeat the Dedham Marauders 5-0 in the finals to capture the championship.

Both Grafton and Dedham were undefeated as they entered the championship game.  Grafton beat Coventry Rhode Warriors 5-0, Coventry Fastpitch 13-1 and Westford Waves 11-2 in the pool round.  In the win over Coventry Fastpitch,  Kendall Leofanti gave up 0 hits and had 3 strikeouts in a 2 inning relief appearance.  In the playoff round on Sunday, the Diamonds beat Coventry 10-2 in the quarter-finals and North Reading 6-0 to reach the championship game.    

Meaghan Sawtelle pitched a masterful game giving up just 4 hits while striking out 5.  She kept the Dedham hitters off-balanced by locating her fastball and mixing in off-speed pitches.  When the Dedham hitters put the ball in play the Grafton defense made play after play.  When the first Dedham batter of the game showed slap, Grafton third baseman Amanda Voellings and first baseman Kelly Slason made it clear that Dedham would not be bunting their way on.  When the next Dedham batter lined a ball up the middle, shortstop Kate Cardoza made a running grab to take away a hit.  After Sawtelle struck out the 3^rd batter on a nasty change-up, Dedham knew they would have a tough time scoring runs.

In the bottom of the first, Grafton faced Dedham’s hard throwing pitcher.  As she has done all year, leadoff hitter Michelle Goulet found a way to get on base to get the Grafton offense going.  Rose Pijaca then laid a perfect bunt down the 3^rd baseline for a hit.  After a double-steal put runners on 2^nd and 3^rd, Kate Cardoza knocked in both teammates with a single for a 2-0 lead.  In the bottom of the 3^rd, the top of the order did it again.  Goulet reached base on an error and Pijaca slapped the ball past the pitcher and 3^rd baseman for an infield hit.  After a double-steal, Goulet scored on Cardoza’s RBI ground out for a 3-0 advantage. 

In the top of the 4^t, it looked like Dedham may be mounting a rally.  With a runner on first, the Dedham clean-up hitter muscled a ball to right. But outfielder Nicole Vaughan made a running catch to kill the rally.  In the bottom of the 4^th, Grafton demonstrated that their lineup is filled with good hitters.  Meaghan Sawtelle led off the inning with a single up the middle.  After a passed ball moved Sawtelle to 2^nd, Nicole Vaughan sacrifice bunted her over to 3^rd.  To prevent the run from scoring, Dedham conceded bunt hits by Leah Berthiaume and Amanda Voellings to load the bases and set up a force out at every base.  But #9 hitter Brianna Guyette foiled their plan by smashing a ball to the gap in left center to score 2 runs.  Those were the last 2 runs of the game as Sawtelle and the Grafton defense kept the door shut for the 5-0 victory.

The Bristol tournament was the final event for the 12U Diamond season.  In addition to Bristol, the 12U squad also won the Taunton and Grafton tournaments this season.  The Diamonds also played in the MA ASA 12B State Championship where they finished 2^nd and in the ASA Eastern National 12B Championship in York PA where they finished 13th out of 31 teams.  After a slow start, the team went on a 25-4 run over their last 5 tournaments to finish with an overall record of 28-9-1. 

14U Diamonds win in Bristol.  Raise season record to 33-5-1.

Grafton finishes 2^nd in Clifton Park NY 

The 14U Grafton Diamonds traveled to Clifton Park, NY to compete in a 20 team tournament on July 11-12. 

The first two games did not start out well.  The Diamonds lost both games by a combined score of 18-0.  The girls responded well in the last game of pool play and beat the host Clifton Park, 2-1.  Sundays elimination games started early at 8:00.  The Diamonds pounded out 14 hits on their way to a 12-4 win.  The next game was against the number 3 seeded team.  Solid defense and timely hitting propelled Grafton to a 3-2 win.  Up next was the number 6 seed.  Once again, the girls played solid in the field and advanced to the semi-finals with a 1-0 win.  The semi-final contest was against the Ullster Fillies, the same team that Grafton opened the tournament with a 7-0 loss.  Grafton scratched out a 1^st inning run and made that score hold up until the bottom of the 7^th.  With 2 outs, the Fillies put a runner on 2^nd with a double.  The next hitter hit a line drive up the middle that struck the Grafton pitcher in the leg but she managed to get up and throw the runner out to win the game and advance to the finals.  The finals were anti-climatic as five games in a row caught up to the team.  Grafton lost 9-0.

Congratulations to the team for an incredible weekend.  The players that participated are Sara Cummuso, Tara Faford, Tess Fitzmaurice, Chelsea Freischlag, Steph Leach, Ali Page, Kendal Roy, Marissa Ruggiero, Amanda Rutkowski, Rebecca Tonelli and Kaylah Turpin

The Grafton Diamonds 12U team defeated the Beverly Panthers 4-1 in the finals of the Grafton 12U Tournament held July 10-12 in Grafton.  Congratulations to Grafton and Beverly and the rest of the field on a fine 2009 tournament.

For the second year in a row, the Grafton Diamonds reached the Finals of the MA ASA 12U State Championships.  Unfortunately the Diamonds fell to Tewksbury and finished as the runner-up this year.  The 12U team defeated Westport, Fairhaven and Swansea to reach the Finals.  The tournament was held on July 4 and 5^th in Swansea, MA

The Grafton Diamonds captured 2^nd Place in the MA ASA 10U State Championships.  The tournament was held on July 4 and 5^th in Grafton, MA.  The 10U team defeated Swansea and Shrewsbury before falling to the Taunton Dynamite in the Finals.

On Sunday June 21, the 14U  Diamonds became the first ever Grafton team to win a tournament hosted by Grafton.

12 teams from all over New England converged on Nelson Park to begin a six game guarantee tournament.  The Diamonds lost their 1^st game to Westford 4-2 despite solid defensive play from Marissa Ruggiero and Tara Faford. The second game of the round robin format was against Maine Riptide from Cumberland Maine.  The bats came alive in the 5^th inning and Grafton pulled off a 13-3 win.  Nikki Murphy, Kaylah Turpin and Tess Fitzmaurice each had 2 hits.  The 3^rd game was against Blue Crush from Chelmsford.  The Diamonds pulled off a 7^th inning rally and won 6-3 behind a clutch 2 out, 2 RBI single from Ali Page.

Sunday presented many challenges.  The constant drizzle made the playing conditions tough and their 1^st opponent was undefeated from the games on Saturday.  The Diamonds were down 4-1 in the 5^th when Amanda Rutkowski smashed a 2 RBI single to pull the team within a run at 4-3.  Chelsea Freischlag started off the bottom on the 7^th with a walk, Kaylah Turpin sacrificed her to second.  Sara Cummuso reached on a perfect bunt, then stole 2^nd.  With the winning runs in scoring position, Rutkowski delivered a walk-off single to center field!  The final game of pool play was against Western Mass Intensity.  Behind solid pitching from Stephanie Leach, the Diamonds were victorious 10-4.

The finals were anti-climatic as Grafton’s ace pitcher, Kendal Roy, tossed a 2 hit, no walk, 11 strikeout shutout against King Phillip Pride from Wrentham.  Grafton scored 5 runs in the 1^st inning and cruised to an 8-0 victory to secure the title.   

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12U Diamonds Play Up - Win 14U Tournament!!!!

The Grafton 12U Diamonds capped off an outstanding season by winning the 14U championship of the Samantha Brasil Memorial Softball Tournament in Attleboro, MA the weekend of August 8-10.  The 12U team entered the event hoping to be competitive against the older teams and looking to gain some valuable experience for next year.  Instead, the Diamonds surprised everyone by winning every game and walking away with the title.

Over the weekend, the Diamonds played their best softball of the season.  Solid pitching, timely hitting, outstanding defense and aggressive baserunning were evident in every game the Diamonds played.  It was a total team effort as every player on the roster made a key contribution at some point during the weekend. 

The Diamonds opened the tournament with an 8-3 win over the Dartmouth Destroyers.  Ali Page had 3 hits and 4 RBIs in the victory.  In game 2, Kate Cardoza (2 hits), Tara Faford (3 hits) and Kendal Roy (3 RBIs) powered Grafton to an 8-2 win over the North Attleboro Rockets.  Pitcher Meaghan Sawtelle picked up the victory and then pitched the Diamonds to a 10-0 win over the Franklin Fusion.  Sawtelle gave up just one walk in the 2 games and relied on her defense to keep the opposition from crossing the plate.  Kelly Slason, Marissa Ruggeiro, Leah Berthiaume, and Michelle Goulet all had hits in the Franklin game.  Outfielder Libby McCusker, who was not able to bat due to injury, had a good day in the field. 

As they have all season, the Diamonds entered the playoff round on Sunday as the top seed.  In the quarterfinals, they defeated the Dartmouth Dynamite 6-2.  In the semi-finals, the Diamonds faced the N. Attleboro team again.  This time the Rockets trotted out their hard-throwing ace to the mound.  But the Diamonds countered with their own hard-throwing ace.  Kendal Roy struck out 9 batters while giving up just 2 hits and 2 walks in the 3-0 shutout victory.  Grafton scored all their runs in the 4^th inning.  After a Rocket error and a Faford single, Ali Page knocked home both runners with a hard hit ball to right field.  After stealing third, Page scored on a passed ball to provide all the runs Roy would need.  In the finals, the Diamonds faced the Fall River Force.  Roy was dominant again striking out 12 batters in the 6-1 victory.  Amanda Rutkowski had a key RBI single in the game.

The 12U Diamonds finished the 2008 campaign with a 29-5 record.  In addition to this title, they also won the Mass ASA State 12 B Championship and the Kingston Invitational tournament.  They were runners-up in Fairhaven and Bristol and placed 3^rd in Grafton.  But more importantly, the girls were not content with some early season success.  They worked hard the entire year to develop their skills and finished the season an even better team than when they started.   

Diamonds 12U Take 2nd Place in Bristol RI

The Grafton Diamonds 12U team returned to their winning ways in Kingston MA July 26-27 by going undefeated on their way to capturing the 2008 Kingston Invitational Softball Tournament 12U championship!

Over the weekend of June 27-29, the Grafton Diamonds 12U team won the Massachusetts ASA 12 “B” Championship tournament.  The Class “B” event is a double elimination tournament for teams that draw their players from a single city or town.  Every city and town in the Commonwealth is eligible to vie for the distinction of being declared “the best team in the state”.       

On Saturday, the Diamonds defeated Plainville 8-0, Hudson 1-0 and Swansea 6-1.  On Sunday, the Diamonds suffered their only loss of the tournament to Rehoboth by a score of 3-1.  However, Grafton bounced back in the next game and crushed Charlton 9-1.  In their final game, they had the opportunity to play Rehoboth again.  This time Grafton pounded Rehoboth 11-4 in a rain shortened (6 inning) game.  This win should have forced a third and final game between Grafton and Rehoboth to determine the championship. However that rubber game was cancelled due to the rain and the championship came down to tie breakers.  Since Grafton had given up the fewest runs throughout the tournament, the Diamonds walked away with the first place trophies and plaque.

The next tournament for the 12U team is our own Grafton Tournament at Nelson Park the weekend of July 11-13.  Check the website for the complete game schedule and “live” results throughout the weekend. 

Click the Start button in the box below to see photos from the tournament (all of these photos, and more, are available for viewing and download via Shutterfly on our PHOTOS page)

U12 B State Tournament

Defense Ready! 1-2-3 HITS!!! Marissa Good Game! Between Games Watching the game Tara Kendal Ali Stealing Michelle Libby Libby Libby takes a lead Libby leading Watch the Steal! Libby Defense Defense Ready Between Innings Kelly Megahn Megahn, Michelle base running Megahn in the field Coach Page Kendal Kendal Tara Tara Coach Page and Ali Amanda Coach Roy and Kendal Amanda Kate Defense Grafton 6, Swansea 1 - Good Game! Tara Ali Kate Megahn Michelle Libby Libby Ali Tara, Ali Kendal Kendal Ali, Amanda Kelly Kelly Kelly Michelle Michelle Marissa Amanda Megahn field Between Innings Between Innings Amanda & Coach Page Amanda Michelle Marissa Kendal Kate, Megahn Tara, Kendal Strike!!! Field Coaches Between games Captains Rehoboth, 2nd game Captains Rehoboth, 2nd game Coaches Tara Tara Game called due to rain Trophies Trophies Trophies

The Grafton Diamonds 10U team defeated Oxford 12-0 to capture 1st place in the 2008 Charlton Invitational Softball Tournament.  The tournament was held the weekend of June 20-22 and featured 10 teams from Central Mass.

            In the opening game, Amanda Voellings threw a no-hitter and had 7 RBIs (including a grand slam) in a 16-0 victory over Webster.  Solid defense was the key in 10-2 win over Charlton.  First baseman Kendall Leofanti made a number of nice plays in the game and flawlessly handled every opportunity throughout the weekend.  Mairead O’Sullivan also had an outstanding tournament in right field.  In the final round robin game Grafton defeated Natick 8-0.  Pitcher Emily Rutkowski struck out 12 batters gave up just 2 hits.  She also helped her cause with 3 hits and 5 RBIs. 

In the first game of the playoffs on Sunday, the Diamonds beat Northboro 6-1 in a rain shortened tilt. 

In the semi-finals, the Diamonds faced Charlton again.  This time Charlton shocked Grafton with 6 runs in the top of the first inning.  But the young Grafton team kept their poise and came right back to score 4 runs in the bottom half of the inning.  Leadoff hitter Lindsey Sawtelle started the comeback with one of her 3 hits in the game.  Later in the inning, Shelbe Turpin beat out a perfectly executed bunt which brought home 2 runners who were running on the pitch.  As the Grafton pitching and defense kept the Charlton team at bay, the Diamonds continued to pile up runs.  In the 5^th inning, Erin Cardoza, Allicyn Cole and Brianna Guyette each had key hits as Grafton scored 6 runs to seal the 16-8 victory.

            After the dramatic semi-final victory, the Diamonds did not experience a letdown in the Championship game.  Once again, they combined outstanding pitching and defense with solid hitting and aggressive baserunning to crush Oxford.  In the Championship game, pitcher Leah Allen had 8 strikeouts and just 2 walks as she pitched a 2-hit shutout.  Catcher Olivia de Freitas singled home Grafton’s 12^th of the game and final run of the tournament. 

            The next tournament for the 10U team will be our own Grafton tournament the weekend of July 18-20.   

On June 14-15 the 12U diamonds travelled down to the Matty Oliveira Memorial Tournament in Fairhaven MA and came home with the 2nd Place trophy!  In an open tournament featuring "A" teams and some of the best "B" teams in Southeastern MA, the Diamonds demonstrated that they are one of the best teams in the state.  (Remember - the Diamonds are a B team)  Playing the 3 strongest teams in the event, the Diamonds posted a 2-1 record by beating the Rehoboth Thunder 5-0 and the New Bedford Blitz 7-1.  The team lost to the tournament champion Mass Xplosion in a 3-2 heartbreaker.  Inclement weather cancelled the final three games of the tournament.

The 6-2 Diamonds next travel to Springfield MA for the Mass ASA State "B" championship tournament on June 27-29.