Hurricanes look forward to home-field advantage at UMass
1
AMHERST - The Amherst Regional softball team feels a home-field advantage at the UMass Softball Complex this time of year.
The Hurricanes have only played their twice in the last two seasons, the 2010 and 2011 Western Massachusetts Division 1 championship games, but they attend school just down the road and many of them go to numerous Minutewoman games during the collegiate season.
"It's going to be nice to come back (to UMass) as a team," Amherst coach Kacey Schmitt said. "They call it their home field. They feel comfortable and it's really going to help."
WMass champion Amherst (22-1) faces central Mass. winner Milford (22-1) in the state semifinals there today at 5:30 p.m. It's a rematch of last year's semifinal and the Hurricanes hope the home-field advantage is helpful in switching the result.
In one of the great pitchers duels in recent history, considering the stakes and quality of lineups, Milford earned a 1-0 victory in eight innings last season with 2010 state Gatorade Player of the Year Shannon Smith (10 strikeouts, two hits, one walk) in the circle at Worcester State College.
Amherst ace Emma Mendoker, who had pitched in the WMass final the day before, was brilliant, striking out 16 and walking none. She gave up three hits - only one in the first seven innings.
Now, it's Mendoker who is the reigning Gatorade Player of the Year.
"It's the defending Gatorade Player of the Year against the new Gatorade Player of the Year, that's something special," Schmitt said. "It's going to be quite a matchup."
Amherst feels the change to UMass will be beneficial to reversing last year's result.
Playing there "is going to be huge," senior Simone Frank said. "It's going to be great. This is like our home turf. We wouldn't want to be anywhere else."
For Amherst senior shortstop Quianna Diaz-Patterson, the game marks one more chance to play at her future college home before lining up for the Minutewomen and coach Elaine Sortino next year.
"I really have no words to express (what it's like to play at the complex). It is so much fun playing on the field," Diaz-Patterson said. "We get to experience what UMass gets to every single day with all their games and the fans and everything. I'm really excited about" going to UMass.
Amherst, which returned seven starters from last year's team, believes last year's experience, as well as a full extra year of varsity play, makes it more prepared this time around.
"I honestly feel like we are" more prepared this year, Schmitt said. "Not only is a year a big difference in a high school kid's life as far as confidence and maturity, they've also grown together as a team."
Still, the Hurricanes know they are in for a dogfight.
"We are going to see a lot better softball and I think this team is ready," Mendoker said. "We have to speed up the pitching machine (in practice), but everything else will be good."
Diaz-Patterson added, "They are a very good team. It will be fun to play them and see if we can possibly beat them this time."
Jim Pignatiello can be reached at jpignatiello@gazettenet.com.
