Wave Softball Gets Seventh Win Under the Lights

By Sam Wood -
Darien 9, Staples 3 - Olivia Gozdz has become an offensive Gozdz-illa.

“She is batting .750, she's already got 21 hits,” said Wave coach Nick DeMaio, with the girls blasting Staples 9-3 away on Monday. “Most good players, in a season, get 22 or 23 hits. Twenty-one hits — we're not halfway done yet.”

And in the game Monday night against Ludlowe, Gozdz was up to her old tricks. It was tied 3-3 after three innings when the Blue Wave, led by Gozdz, started to really get the bats going. Darien drove in the runs from there, scoring once in the top of the fourth for what stood up as the winner, adding two in each of the fifth and sixth and tacking another on in the seventh.

“From then on (in the fourth) we were able to hold them,” DeMaio said. “We're hitting much better this year.”

Each team had eight hits.

“And this is the difference this year,” said DeMaio. “Jessica (DeMaio) — 17 hits. Nicole Buch, 18 hits, Courtney Bell 10 hits. That's the difference right there.”

Staples was charged with five errors in the night game, Darien with none, and at the murky host field, where the lights can turn hit balls into phantoms of themselves.

“Our defense has been excellent,” DeMaio said. “You know, the lights are not the greatest there, and their defense struggled with it a bit. The outfielders got a poor jump.”

The Wave improves to 7-1 overall. Staples drops to 6-3, 5-3. Jessica DeMaio (7-1) had the win striking out five, walking three. Gozdz tripled and had two hits in all.

“Almost a home run, we were going to send her, there's no fence there,” DeMaio said of the three-base shot.

DeMaio doubled and drove in two runs, Emma Hamilton had two hits, Bell doubled, Kelly Fahey had a hit.

“So it's the usual cast of characters,” said Coach DeMaio.

Staples had taken a strong and previously undefeated St. Joseph on Thursday.

“And nobody saw that coming,” DeMaio added. “So they came into the game with high hopes of having a big season.”

Darien's hopes can stay high now too.

Source: http://www.darienps.org/sports/dhssoftball/