Center Moriches rallies but isn’t enough in Southeast Regional final

Center Moriches impressed defensively and rallied from an early deficit with five runs in the sixth inning to pull within one, but a trio of home runs put the game out of reach as Marlboro won, 15-8, in the Southeast Regional Class B softball championship Saturday at Rhinebeck Elementary School.

Cierra Smith singled in the sixth for Center Moriches (23-2) and led the team with three hits. She also added an RBI single in a three-run fourth inning that started with a home run by Caroline Casey.

Marlboro (20-3) went up 10-8 when Amber Mianti homered in the bottom of the sixth and the team quashed any ideas of a Center Moriches comeback when Melissa Sadler and Cassie LaPointe each homered later in the inning to make it 15-8.

“We left it all out on the field, there was no holding back,” Smith said in a phone interview. “They were just hitting our pitching. We had no errors. We did the best we could and I’m proud of us for that.”

Coach Rich Roberts praised his team for the deep playoff run and added that the entire season was successful.

“I actually thought we played well — it’s just, they hit,” Roberts said. “We made some exceptional plays in the field: we turned two double plays, we threw two people out at the plate, we scored eight runs. I give them credit, they really hit well today.

“We only made one or two mistakes and they capitalized on it. The girls had an amazing season. We can’t complain when you’re playing in the regional final.”