Riccio powers MOT into Eastern Regional championship

MOT Senior All Stars advance to the Senior League Softball Eastern Regional championship. Photo Courtesy of MOT Little League

Delaware representative MOT Senior All-Stars faced the favorite in the tournament, the 4-0 Connecticut team In the Senior League Softball Eastern Regional semifinals with the winner advancing to the championship. MOT needed late inning heroics and Gracie Riccio provided that. 

MOT jumped out to an early lead in the bottom of the first inning when Lucy Ponden singled, scoring a run followed by a double by Myranda Talmadge which scored two more runs. Mot jumped out to an early 3-0 lead over the tournament favorite 

 scored one run in the top of the third inning to pull the game within two runs 3-1. They then tied the game in the top of the fifth inning scoring two runs bringing it to a 3-3 game. 

In the bottom of the fifth inning with two outs Riccio stepped to the plate. On a 1-1 count she took the pitch and crushed it into left center field and without a doubt she knew it was gone. She dropped her bat, looked to her dugout and let her teammates know she had just given them the lead. 

Talamadge shut Connecticut down in the last two innings to secure MOT’s trip to the championship. She went on to throw all seven innings allowing 3 runs on 8 hits while striking out 12 batters. 

MOT advances to the Senior League Softball Eastern Regional championship with the 4-3 victory over Connecticut. MOT now faces the host team Massachusetts District 4 Little League on Wednesday at 11 am for a chance to advance to the Senior League Little League World Series which is ironically held at Lower Sussex Little League here in Frankford, Delaware. 

If they win they have a chance to play in front of a home crowd. You can watch the live stats of the game on gamechanger and even watch it live if you subscribe. Best of luck tomorrow and we hope to see them next week here in Delaware playing for the World Series.

Nick Halliday

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