Rochester Girls Open
With Two Wins
By Samantha Mishkit

The Rochester Rockets started the season with two wins versus West Rutland in a double header on April 19. The first win was 17-5 and the second was 21-4. Rochester was thrilled as they haven’t beaten West Rutland in a very long time.

Rochester's players for this season are: senior captains Desiree Bourassa playing shortstop, and Samantha Mishkit currently on the bench recovering from a basketball injury. Returning juniors are Megan Pratt as the starting pitcher and Vanessa Mongeur as first baseman. New juniors are Billy-Jo Leonard and Midori Cruickshank in the outfield. Many new players are freshmen, including an aspiring pitcher Bennett McPhetres, and in the outfield are Hannah-Mollie West, Alicia Waite, and Daley Crowley. Miranda Shepard is taking her sister's place at third, Lauren Pratt behind the plate, and Sierra Cruikshank at second. With only three returning players, head coach Brandi Sargent and assistant coach Charlie Martin are thrilled to see how quickly this new team is coming together.

With no time for scrimmages due to the weather and with only two practices on the field, the first inning was expected to be shaky, and it was. Rochester had only one run and three quick strikeouts. But by the third inning, the Rockets had the pitcher timed down perfectly, which resulted in seven runs, helped by doubles from freshmen West and Waite.

In the fourth inning, the Rockets pulled even further ahead, making the score 17-3. West Rutland made a few errors in the field, and McPhetres' triple and Pratt's home run just added to the score. The Rockets never had their last ups at bat, ending in the top of the seventh.

West Rutland's Sara Walezuk had a home run in the first inning and Katie Lincoln had a triple to left-field in the fifth.

Second Win

After a 20-minute break in between games, game two started. Rochester continued to be strong, getting two homeruns, one from Pratt and Mongeur in the first inning. West Rutland couldn't manage to get a nice hit off any pitches, only having four runs total. The "15 run rule" came into effect and ended the game in the fifth inning 21-4.

Rochester's highlights were Pratt's back-to-back doubles and McPhetres' triple. Also, at the mound, McPhetres entered halfway into the second inning, pitching her first varsity game with four strikeouts and giving up only three hits.

West Rutland's Katie Lincoln had a homerun to centerfield.

The Rockets start with a 2-0 record and play Whitcomb on the 24^th in Bethel.

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