Glen Cove takes down Wheatley

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After a litany of postponed games due to weather interference, Glen Cove took to the softball field last Saturday in the midst of wavering showers to beat Wheatley 14-5, earning its fourth victory this season and second over Wheatley.

The Big Red (4-5 in Conference ABC-III) was sparked by a stout offensive attack that was sustained by multiple players. Micaela Costello, starting at second base, led off and was instrumental in reaching first base on three separate occasions, including an RBI infield single.

Safire Blissett, a senior and the fiery vocal leader of the club, performed extremely well both offensively and defensively. Within the first few minutes of the game, Wheatley shot a liner towards the hot corner. Blissett was there, in apt positioning, making the diving stab for out number two of the inning. She also finished 2-3 at the plate with an RBI, two singles, and reaching first base on two walks as well.

“(Blissett) is a leader out there and she played well again today,” Glen Cove head coach Angela Zupa said.

Zupa also briefly spoke on how the success of the team is contributed to the pitching prowess of Nafeesah Ali, who earned the victory. “(Ali) pitched well and she will continue to be our starter for most games. Unless we have a scenario where we have a couple games back to back, then we’ll start Blissett,” said Zupa. “Ali showed constraint at the plate as well, earning herself a few walks that led to some important base running situations.”

Jaynise Espinal was also a force at the plate, finishing with an RBI and a double on the day. Alyssa Schmitt also finished with two hits, one being a two-run double.

All of the offensive firepower of the Big Red led to the dismay of the Wheatley pitching staff. Wheatley’s starter Alyssa Belle was forced out of the game after good plate discipline shown by Glen Cove, leading to a multitude of walks and a collection of baserunners.

Unfortunately, not every aspect of this game was peachy for Glen Cove. Despite a stellar performance from Zupa’s girls, the coaches and parents in the stands alike had a collective scare when starter Karla Fernandez slid feet first into second base during a double play opportunity. An errant slide and collision with the bag were followed by the failure of Martinez to stand shortly thereafter. The crowd stood in silence, as an ambulance was called to tend to the injured player. Roughly an inning later, Martinez was brought off from the dugout on a stretcher, cheerfully flashing the thumbs up sign with a promising smile on her face.

“From what I’ve heard thus far, it seems to be her ankle. The severity is still up in the air. It’s very unfortunate this happened,” Zupa said.

Although Martinez’s injury stifles both the production and collective emotions of the team, it could an opportunity to rally around a collective idea, pushing towards the end of the season.

The game ball, appropriately, was awarded to Martinez.