GRANBY — The Holyoke softball team got off to a hot start and never let up Wednesday, as the visitors defeated Granby, 18-5 in five innings, to capture their fourth straight win.

The Purple Knights started fast – scoring three runs in the top of the first inning. After pitcher Kylie Blaha sent Granby down 1-2-3 in the bottom of the inning, the Holyoke bats picked up where they left off in the second.

After the first two runners reached, Granby starting pitcher Mabel Carillon got Jenialis Camacha to strikeout and Blaha to fly out, and it seemed as if it would be a smooth inning.

The Purple Knights had other ideas however.

The next five batters reached base, ballooning the score to 8-0. Part of the attack was Holyoke’s patience at the plate, while the other part was the constant pressure that it put on the Rams defense. Jayshalee Santos and Tryanna Ayala both stole second base, while also advancing on almost every passed ball. 

“We say that all the time,” Holyoke head coach Yaixsa Vargas said. “Always being aggressive, wanting to score first and get the momentum going [early].”

In the home half, Granby’s Cassie Flaherty singled to start the inning and two batters later, Grace Roy tripled to score Flaherty and getting the Rams on the board. Meredith Bartosz singled, scoring Roy and making it an 8-2 ballgame.

The next frame started the exact same way as the Purple Knights batted around for the second straight inning – adding another five runs and extending their lead to 13-2. 

In the bottom of the third the Rams added one, but still faced a steep deficit.

Over the next two innings Holyoke sent 16 batters to the plate, scoring five more and putting the game into run-rule territory.

But even with that, the Granby bats wouldn't go away as the hosts scored two more in the bottom of the fourth. 

As the Rams started to produce on offense, the insurmountable lead that Holyoke had built became the only thing standing in their way.  

Eleanor Szlosek led the Rams with three hits while Flaherty and Bartosz both added two each. 

Although the game ended after five innings, Granby’s head coach Rich Roy said he was proud of the effort his players showed despite the score. 

“We’ve got a great group of girls,” Roy said. “They work hard every day and they don’t ever quit.”

Holyoke (4-2) will travel to Agawam Thursday to try and make it five wins in a row while Granby (4-4) will have to wait until Friday to bounce back as it travels to North Brookfield.

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