Lady Eagles Eliminated From Playoffs By 4-1 Loss To Smithtown East

The Hauppauge varsity softball team has been eliminated from the Suffolk County Class AA playoffs after losing 4-1  to the No. 13 Smithtown East in the opening round on Wednesday evening. The Lady Eagles offense was shutdown by Smithtown East pitcher Corrine Vazac through the first six innings, only making one hit and not getting a base runner into scoring position until the seventh inning.

Score: Smithtown East 4, Hauppauge 1

Record: Smithtown East 13-8, Hauppauge 16-5

Heroes: Hauppauge pitcher Nicole Ehlinger took command of the mound for the Lady Eagles, throwing three perfect innings with five strikeouts. Overall, Ehlinger allowed eight hits and two walks while striking out 10 Smithtown East batters. She also scored Hauppauge’s only run after hitting a double in the bottom of the seventh inning. 

Turning Point: Smithtown East took a 2-0 lead in the top of the fourth inning when Jessica Mulderig delivered a two-out, two-run single with the bases loaded.

Smithtown East continued to build on this lead by scoring two runs in the top of the sixth.

Quotes: “She [Corrine Vazac] was really fantastic today, but we’ve faced her before and we’ve beaten her,” said Lady Eagles head coach Jim McGowan. “We haven’t been hitting the ball in a while and we didn’t hit today. It’s a disappointing season because we weren’t satisfied just making the playoffs.”

Key Stat: Hauppauge’s offense only made two hits in first six innings, falling behind 3-0 as Vazac’s pitching proved to be too much to handle on Wednesday. Ehlinger, Devan Valoroso, Sandy Hawthorne and Megan Leun recorded hits in the loss.

Bottom Line: The Lady Eagles’ hopes for a long playoff run and another Suffolk County championship appearance came to an abrupt and unexpected end against Smithtown East.