Friends on and off the field

The East Meadow Fillies, fresh off their Long Island championship victory. At top, from left, are coaches John Duhs, Al Semonella and Joe Cuttone. In the middle row, from left, are teammates Arianna Duhs, Amy Mallah, Gianna Imperiale, Rosanna Cuttone, Rachel Ninesling, and at bottom, from left, Christina Semonella, Julia Cuttone, Alyssa Yablansky and Stephanie Botman. Not pictured are Maria Boyle, McKayla Entenmann, Nicole Morreale and coach Rick Yablansky.

Donovan Berthoud/Herald

Shortstop Stefanie Botman, 12, fired the ball to first base as the team practiced double plays on the McVey Elementary School playing fields.

Donovan Berthoud/Herald

Nicole Morreale dove to catch a fly ball during a recent East Meadow Fillies team practice. The group of 12 girls have been playing together for three years.

Donovan Berthoud/Herald

Manager John Duhs smacked fly balls to the girls, who worked on their fielding and cut-off throws.

Donovan Berthoud/Herald

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Practicing on the McVey Elementary School ball fields in the late afternoon earlier this month, the East Meadow Fillies softball team was hard at work fine tuning their fundamentals.

Situated in the infield, the girls charged aggressively when coach Joe Cuttone batted a slow rolling ground ball. At the crack of the bat, the girls screamed simultaneously, “Bunt!” and once fielded, a second unified scream identified the base in which the ball was to be thrown to.

After several rounds of this, the girls took a water break, joining together on the bench to share a laugh. With broad smiles on their faces, it was evident that the group of 11- and 12-year-olds enjoyed being together.

It’s the dichotomy that has made the team so successful since they began playing together a few years ago: fun off the field, business on the field. “We always trust each other during a play,” said Gianna Imperiale, 12, who plays first base. “We always communicate.”

With their vast commitment and hardworking nature, it doesn’t take much enforcement to compose the girls during games, said Cuttone. But, still, he said he always tells them, “Just focus on softball for two hours. That’s all we ask of them.”

And they do.

Last month, the girls won the Williamsport Tournament’s Section 6 11U Long Island Championship, after winning four games by a combined score of 62-5. The victory propelled the girls to the state championship in upstate Fishkill, where they finished as the runner-up, winning two games and losing two.

It was a new experience for the girls, who had never traveled abroad for softball. “We got to celebrate as a team,” said Amy Mallah, 11, who plays third base and shortstop. “We do that a lot but, but it was for something bigger.”

And it also gave them extra time to spend with each other. The team of 12 comprises all but two students who attend Woodland Middle School. Some have known each other since second grade. “You can see we work together,” said Arianna Duhs, 11, one of the team’s outfielders. “We’ve been playing together forever.”

“The more we play together … we’ve become closer,” added pitcher Julia Cuttone, 12, whose twin sister Rosanna is also on the team.