VIDEO: Several Local Girls play key role in Championship victory
by Bill Collmer, Hornell Sun Senior Sports Writer
MOREAU- The Smash it Sports 14 and under Fast Pitch Travel Softball team out of Wayland recently traveled four and a half hours to Fort Edward just outside of Glens Falls and won the Town of Moreau ADK Fastpitch Showcase Silver Bracket. Playing at Harry J Betar Jr. Recreational Park. The Smash it up team played two games Friday June 19th, losing their first game 6-4 to the Empire State Huskies out of Long Island but didn’t lose another game all weekend. They defeated the Huskies in game two Friday night 7-2. In Friday’s games Karlynne Lay from Spencerport hit her first career Home Run.
Saturday afternoon June 20th they defeated the Dodgers 6-4 and Fire 18-4.
Sunday June 21st, they defeated the Saratoga Thunder 5-4, they were ahead 5-1 in the top of the 7th and held on for the win. Wayland-Cohocton 8th grader Riley Burke finished 2-for-3.
Later on in the day Sunday they defeated a 16-18-year-old team 9-3. They went on to win the Championship game 4-3. Burke was 3-for-3 with two stolen bases. Burke stole home on a dropped third strike that was only a few feet from the plate to be the eventual game winning run in the championship game.
Three members of Avoca-Prattsburgh’s Class D2 Sectional Championship team are prominent members of the Smash it up team, Steuben County League MVP Meyah Putnam, Class D2 Tournament MVP and Steuben County First Team All-Star Payton Hopkins and Steuben County first Team All-Star Brooke Vanskiver. Hopkins picked up the win in the circle for Smash it up Sunday afternoon in the Championship game. In Saturday afternoons games Putnam hit an inside the park Home Run, bringing the team together for this celebration:
“We had a great weekend, we turned four double plays, had two sliding catches in the Outfield, and hit two home runs,” Smash it up Coach Jamie Burke said.
“Meyah Putnam turned a sick double play in the first game on Sunday, diving up the middle and tossing to Kennedy Allison at second base who then threw to first. All three teams we played on Sunday were older teams and much bigger than us,” Burke added.
Riley Burke had ten hits on the weekend with nine singles and a triple; she stole five bases total and had two RBI.
Putnam had Eight hits, six singles, one double, one Home Run, five RBI and six stolen bases. Hopkins had seven hits, four singles, two doubles, one triple and two RBI. Vanskiver had five hits, with four singles, one double and three RBI.
Hopkins went 4-0 in the circle over the weekend; she had 1.05 ERA with nine strikeouts and 7 walks. Olean Freshman Macy Darrow went 2-1 on the mound with Twelve strikeouts.
As a team they batted .331 for the weekend, they had 53 hits including seven doubles, and two triples.
Coach Jamie Burke had a stellar high school Softball playing career at Prattsburgh in the early 1990’s, she was selected to the New York State All-State team four years, 1991-2nd Team, 1992-3rd team 1993 & 1994 First Team
She held the title of the Highest Batting average in the Nation for nine years. She still holds Several Section five single-season and Career records.
Please see below:
She was Head varsity Softball Coach at her Alma Mater Prattsburgh and won five straight League Championships while also winning Sectional Championships in 2001 & 2003, the 2003 team advanced to the New York State Final Four. She was NYSSCOGS Class D coach of the year in 2003.
Burke took over the Keuka College Softball Program and set the record for wins in her first year. She won the Northeastern Athletic Conference Championship in her second year and repeated for the next six years.
She finished with 330 + wins, which is the most of any Keuka coach in all sports. She was named NEAC Coach of the Year seven times. She won 10 regular-season titles and seven conference tournament championships.
Smash it ups remaining Summer Schedule and Team Rooster:
| 6/23/2026 Tuesday Midlakes League Night 6/27-6/28 Sat-Sun West Seneca Magic in Buffalo, NY 6/30/2026 Tuesday Midlakes League Night 7/7/2026 Tuesday Midlakes League Night 7/10-7/12 Fri-Sun National Invitational Tournament Hagerstown, MD 7/14/2026 Tuesday Midlakes League Night 7/17-7/19 Fri-Sun 1000 Island Challenge 7/21/2026 Tuesday Midlakes League Night 7/28/2026 Tuesday Midlakes League Night | Player’s Name # YR POS Hometown Gabby McGrath 1 8 OF/2B/C Penfield, NY Brooke VanSkiver 3 9 C/3B Prattsburgh, NY Karlynne Lay 4 9 1B/OF Spencerport, NY Riley Burke 5 8 UT Wayland, NY Evelyn Johnston 7 9 OF Honeoye Falls, NY Ileiahna Mateo 8 10 C/2B/OF Webster, NY Colleen Metcalfe 9 8 OF Dansville, NY Eden Rivera 10 9 OF Honeoye Falls, NY Meyah Putnam 11 10 SS/C/P Prattsburgh, NY Maci Darrow 14 9 P/1B Olean, NY Payton Hopkins 42 10 3B/P Avoca, NY Kennedy Allison 55 9 2B/OF Dansville, NY |
