Patience is a virtue, especially at the plate, and Palisades High sophomore Paulette Ely showed why with two outs in the final inning of Thursday’s Western League softball game against Fairfax.
Determined to make the most of a second chance, Ely drew a bases-loaded walk to force home Monika Swanson with the winning run to finish off a 9-8 comeback victory at Stadium by the Sea.
Ely worked the count full, then laid off a ball out of the strike zone, trotting to first base as her joyous teammates began to celebrate. Palisades trailed 8-0 midway through the fourth inning.
“Standing on deck I was really nervous but it helped when we tied it because I knew even if I struck out we’d have another inning,” Ely said. “I kept thinking ‘Make her throw a strike. Even when we were behind I knew we could do it. We wanted it more.”
Ely faced a similar situation in the sixth, coming to bat with the bases loaded and two outs, but she flied out to right field to end the inning, leaving the Dolphins behind by three runs.
Ely had a hit, walked three times and added two RBIs. She also relieved Talia Hunter in the circle in the third inning and allowed only one run on three hits in four and two-thirds innings.
Swanson went five-for-five (all singles) with three RBIs and three runs scored, Jaylene Navarro hit two home runs and Sasha Vanley added two hits for the Dolphins (5-6 overall, 4-1 in league).
Palisades trailed 8-0 after four and a half innings and was behind 8-5 heading to the bottom of the seventh. Vanley led off with a single, Hunter reached on an error and Navarro walked to load the bases with no outs. After a strikeout, Swanson singled up the middle to score two runs. A ground ball moved the Lions (5-8, 2-4) within one out of a win, but Calia Hunter hit a hard line drive to third to score the tying run. Daisy Jones followed with a walk that loaded the bases and set the stage for Ely.
“It was very dramatic,” Swanson said. “It was a big win for us.”
Two days earlier Palisades led Westchester 11-2 when the game was called after three innings due to rain. It will likely be completed when the teams play again April 30 at Westchester.
“You don’t learn a whole lot from blowouts so it’s nice to have one like this,” Coach Tori Dario said. “I told the girls going into the last inning to just be smart hitters. It’s now or never, it’s do or die – and they came through.”
— Steve Galluzzo
This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get access.
