RUMFORD — As it has all season, the bottom third came through for Buckfield on Friday.
The No. 8 hitter Emily Carrasquillo had two hits and drove in three runs for the Bucks in a 10-3 win over Mountain Valley at the Hosmer Field Athletic Complex.
Both of Carrasquillo’s hits came with two outs.
“When there are two outs, that’s when the pressure is on me,” Carrasquillo said.
The Falcons’ defense didn’t give freshman pitcher Ali Legere enough help, committing three errors in the game.
“(Buckfield) capitalized on our mistakes, especially in the (second) inning, we should had a girl out at first, and the play at third base (in the fifth inning), that probably would have gotten us out of (four) runs,” Mountain Valley coach Gary Dolloff said.
In the second inning, Legere’s throw to first base for what would have been the inning-ending out was mishandled. Buckfield’s Cassidy Lowell moved from first base to third base on the play, while Abby Albert, the batter, reached second.
Carrasquillo then drove in Lowell with an RBI single down the left field line. Carrasquillo reached second on the relay throw and Albert moved to third. Abby Prokey drove in Carrasquillo and Albert with a double to left center that gave the Bucks a 3-0 lead.
“That’s what kind of been working for us all season,” Buckfield coach Tammy Tatlock said of the bottom of the order. “We all stick together and work together, support each other, we got everybody’s back.”
Legere got in trouble in the top of fifth when the Bucks (9-6) loaded the bases on two walks and an error. Karen Haylock came home when Albert reached on a walk, and Lowell scored on a passed ball.
Carrasquillo stepped to the plate and hit a double that drove in Alyssa Litchfield from third base and Albert from second to give the Bucks a 7-0 lead.
Mountain Valley’s Brooke Brown picked up the first hit on Buckfield starter Cara Merrill in the bottom of the fifth with a single to center field.
The Falcons’ (4-10) bats came alive and produced three runs in the bottom of the sixth inning. Legere and Gracie Farmum reached on singles, then Gabbie Gallant’s single scored Legere from second base. Brown hit another single to load the bases, and an Emma Clukey infield single scored Farnum and Gallant when Buckfield tried to get a force out at second base.
“I told (my players) to move up at the plate, she was throwing a lot of outside pitches,” Dolloff said. “We were swinging and we couldn’t quite reach them, so I told them to move up a half of a step to reach that outside pitch.”
Merrill finished the game with seven strikeouts no walks while allowing five hits.
The Bucks capped the scoring with three runs in the seventh — two runs of those coming on bases-loaded walks, and McKenna Ridlon singled home the other.
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