By Perry L. Novak, Dispatch Sports Editor
Some thoughts on the Sauquoit Valley at Canastota softball game that was played on May 9. Box scores and linescores don’t always tell the story, and sometimes neither does the story tell the story as fully as desired.
Space and time limitations make covering an epic game like the aforementioned a challenge. Some of the highlights I wished we had room for were:
1 - a terrific catch on a Kelsey Walton line drive by Canastota second baseman Sam McCarthy in the top of the second inning.
2 - Jessica Patterelli’s three straight strikeouts on screwballs early in the game.
3 - Patterelli’s great play on a Meghan Gaffney dribble and Lindsay McGinley’s great stretch for a 1-3 out in the third inning for the hosts.

4 - McCarthy’s tremendous shovel throw to Alexis havens to begin a 4-6-3 double play in the top of the fifth inning.

5 - Emily Harp’s RBI hit on a 3-0 count in the bottom of the fifth for the hosts.
6 - Jessie Boswell’s shoestring catch in right field on a fly by Jessica Jecko and her throw to first base to double up Vanessa Jecko.
7 - Jessica Jecko picking off Patterelli in the sixth inning.
8 - Walton, Nicole Burline and Chelsea Schloop hitting singles, Brianna Cardillo and Michaela Clark belting doubles and Meghan Gaffney hitting a single in consecutive at bats to rally Sauquoit Valley from a 4-2 deficit to a 7-4 lead in the top of the seventh.
9 - Canastota taking advantage of two inning-opening errors in the bottom of the seventh to tie the game. Val Baer’s bloop hit followed the miscues, Boswell had a one-out hit and Ally Bernier slapped a single to force extra innings.
10 - Clark’s great throw to get Patterelli trying to score the winning run at the plate in the eighth.
11 - McGinley making a superb recovery from taking a bad hop off her chin to get the leadoff hitter out in the top of the ninth.
12 - Patterelli apparently hurting her ankle on a pitch to the next batter and toughing it out to pitch the rest of the inning.
13 - Sauquoit Valley taking advantage of a passed ball and a walk to keep the rally going and Shania Taylor shaking off a hitless day to rap a two-RBI hit.
14 - Danielle Taylor blooping a hit to plate the insurance runs seconds later.
15 - Bernier, despite her team being down four runs and down to its last out, slapping her way on base to make the visitors wonder if another comeback was in order.

Games like this even the losing team will remember with a bit of a smile decades down the road.