SCARBOROUGH – Windham beautifully battled mighty Scarborough through the first half of the teams’ semifinals matchup on Saturday, June 10. But a Hunter Greenleaf grand slam in the bottom of the fourth propelled the Storm out front in a big way, leading to an eventual 5-0 victory.

“It stinks, to lose to them again,” Windham head coach Travis Demmons said. “We just came up a little bit short, yet again here. I think we’re right there. One pitch, it’s a different ballgame. And Lily (Volk, Scaborough starter in the circle) has just got our number.”

It was the sort of game one might expect from these two titans of Maine high school softball – which is to say, it looked nothing like their regular-season matchup, when the Eagles assuredly did not bring their A-game to the diamond and suffered a 15-0 defeat for it.

“We played clean today,” Demmons said of the difference between the two bouts. “Dani was throwing strikes, we weren’t issuing walks. Mainly, the girls were making plays. They made routine plays, and they made some excellent plays.”

Both teams threatened now and then throughout the action, but in the end, only Scarborough could get girls around. 

“We had opportunities, early in the game, we just couldn’t get the clutch hit,” Demmons said. 

Greenleaf’s grand slam drove in Courtney Brochu, Sam Carreiro and Lindsey Kelley. “There was nothing that stood out,” Demmons said of the Eagles’ play leading up to the hit. “Just base hits. Singles. They strung a few hits together. And that pitch, that was belt-high, middle of the plate, and with Dani’s velocity not what it was in years past, she can’t afford those.”

Windham ace Dani Tardiff had shoulder surgery in the off-season and has been recuperating since.

The Storm added a final run in the sixth to cap the afternoon.

“Tom (Griffin, Scaborough head coach) has done a great job with them,” Demmons said of the opposition. “I’ve got nothing but respect for that program. And they win the right way; they’re respectful. Kudos to them.”

Windham retires for the year at 14-4. Scarborough, 18-0 after dispatching the Eagles, faced off with No. 2 Portland in the A South Final on June 14th.

Adam Birt can be reached at abirt@keepmecurrent.com. Follow him on Twitter: @CurrentSportsME

Scarborough pitcher Lily Volk whips a ball toward first.

Sam Carreiro arrives home for Scarborough after Hunter Greenleaf’s grand slam.

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