LYNN — Lynn English and Lynn Classical. One of the top softball rivalries in the area made its way to Breed Middle School on Tuesday, with the Rams (6-7) taking down the Bulldogs (5-8) by a score of 6-2.

“We knew it was a big game. I think this is the closest the skill level has been between our two teams,” said Classical coach Joe Morin. “They haven’t beaten us in a long time and we knew they would be up for it. We knew we needed to win today. We have winnable games coming up, but we knew the importance of winning this game.” 

Good teams start fast. The Rams did just that with a three-run first inning. They were led by the sophomore duo of Emma Chevalier and Brooke Braswell, who brought home the game’s first two runs with an infield single that brought in Lauren Wilson and Nevaeh Eth. Chevalier got in on the action with a sacrifice bunt that brought Braswell home to give the Rams a 3-0 cushion. 

Morin praised his sophomores, starting with Braswell.

“She’s been on all year. She hit close to .500 last year and this year, she’s around the same mark,” Morin said. “She does a great job against fast pitchers where she can wait on it and then really drive it to left-center field. She’s always aggressive and she has the green light on the bases to steal.” 

As for Chevalier, Morin praised her versatility.

“She’s done a lot for us this year. She was going to close the game today if we needed her to,” Morin said. “The last few games, she’s really been driving the ball. She started a little bit slow, but she’s really come on as of late.”

For English, coach Ashley Aldred said the first-inning blunder was the difference in the game. 

“I think we played a little scared in the first inning. We made a couple of errors and allowed three runs across,” she said. “We weren’t ready for the ball to be hit at us that inning. I think that it brought us down a bit.” 

English got on the board in the third inning when pitcher, and cleanup hitter, Arianna Laboy hit an RBI single to bring home LeaNyah Pineiro to make it 3-1. 

And on the mound, Laboy was dealing, finishing the game with eight strikeouts – even drawing praise from Morin. 

“Their pitcher is phenomenal. She’s a really good pitcher, I think she’s the best pitcher in the league,” Morin said. “I don’t think she gets enough credit for the things she can do.” 

Aldred agreed, and pitched a few compliments herself.

“She’s a tremendous leader on and off the field,” Aldred said. “On the field, she’s just an amazing player. She’s amazing in everything that she does. Her bat has stepped up over the past couple of games… She’s one hell of a pitcher.” 

The Rams added two more runs in the bottom of the third, again, from the dynamic sophomore duo. Chevalier and Braswell registered more RBI in the inning to make it 5-1. 

Later, in the sixth, it was Ava Cahill who brought home the sixth and final run to make it 6-2. 

Classical pitcher Rachel Dana went the distance, finishing with eight strikeouts and just one earned run across. 

“Senior captain Rachel Dana pitched outstanding today. She attacked the zones today and delivered,” Morin said.

After the game, both coaches were complimentary of specific players who stuck out. For Classical, it was Cahil, who even received the game ball.

“Junior Ava Cahill had a big hit in the last inning. She hasn’t been an everyday starter, but she’s been swinging the ball well in practice and we gave her some opportunities and she came through big today,” Morin said. “That’s what you love to see – a player working hard who’s not an everyday starter grinding and coming up big in the game. She got a game ball because of that.” 

For English, it was Pineiro for stepping up whenever her team needed her, according to Aldred. 

“She’s great. Behind the plate, she’s grown tremendously over the years. You can see it from the first inning. She got delayed-stealed on and then could have had a few popups, but she made the adjustments and made big plays from there on out,” Aldred said. “She should be in center field, but we need someone who can catch and she stepped up for her team.” 

At the end of the day, despite the archrivalry, there was mutual respect between the two programs. 

“It’s a rivalry game. Whenever you play them, you can feel the game. In school, everyone knows that it’s English-Classical and it just has a different energy,” Morin said. “They have a good team over there and Ashley does a great job.”