LISBON FALLS – Candace Hall almost experienced a no-hitter with no celebration.

Telstar Regional High School softball teammates Megan Smith and Abby Hutchins took care of that.

Smith smacked a game-tying triple with two out in the sixth inning Tuesday. In the seventh, Hutchins doubled with two away and trotted home on the lone error of the day to lift the undefeated Rebels to a 2-1 Mountain Valley Conference triumph over Lisbon at Goddard Field.

Hall hurled her second no-hitter of the spring for reigning Class C champion Telstar (7-0). After walking three of the first five hitters to give the Greyhounds a run in the first inning, Hall retired the last 19 in a row. She struck out 10.

“I don’t know what was up the first inning,” said Hall. “We bounced back, thankfully.”

The Rebels put at least one runner on base in every frame, but not until its eighth hit of the afternoon could Telstar crack the scoreboard against Lisbon’s Emily Moore.

Vicki Rice led off the sixth with a flare that fell just inside the chalk line behind first base. After a sacrifice bunt and a groundout, Smith cranked a line drive to left field that just eluded the diving Kristen Laffely.

Moore appeared to escape unscathed after Hutchins’ two-bagger in the seventh when she coaxed Julia Stambolis into a pop-up to second. Lisbon’s ranging second baseman and incoming center fielder collided, however, and the ball fell to the turf as Hutchins scampered across the plate with the eventual winning run.

“We only had about two solid hits. We started to wake up at the end,” said Telstar coach Jim Lunney. “They’re a good, solid team. (Moore) didn’t throw anything remotely close to a bad pitch. She did a nice job.”

Class B Lisbon (5-2) couldn’t match that efficiency at the plate, though, hitting only three balls out of the infield against Hall.

“The difference was our offense. We didn’t hit the ball,” said Lisbon coach Mike Fortier. “We had a miscue in the field, but that wasn’t the difference in the game.”

With only two seniors and seven first-year starters in its defensive alignment, Telstar threw around the leather in support of Hall’s 106-pitch gem.

Stambolis fired a strike from right field to nail Kala Michaud and wipe out a certain Lisbon hit in the fourth. With one out in the seventh, second baseman Joseline Belanger left her feet to stab a rising liner off Sam Purcell’s bat.

“I have great defense behind me,” said Hall. “That helps.”

Ashley Beaulieu, Moore and Purcell drew the first-inning free passes for the Greyhounds. Beaulieu stole second and third after her leadoff walk and scored on Christy McAuliffe’s groundout to third.

“She throws strikes,” Lunney said of Hall. “She gives me a heart attack when she doesn’t throw that first-pitch strike or she goes 2-and-0, but she doesn’t walk many.”

Hutchins, Rice and Hall each delivered two of the Rebels’ 10 hits.

Lisbon knows it missed a precious opportunity to swipe a win from the program that is every MVC rival’s litmus test at the moment.

“Telstar has been the team (to beat) in the MVC the last two years, the last three years,” Fortier said. “I know our girls are disappointed in the outcome of this game, because they know how well we can play, and they know that we were capable of winning this game. Hopefully they learn from that and keep themselves together and we can continue the season, because it’s not over. It’s a long season.”


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