Shivu Sathe and Raza Hassan (in order)
Junior Kyle Woody slides into home and junior Emily Spielman swings hard in hopes of getting a run to help her team.
Phoenix Baseball and Softball Take On Titans During Nail-Biting Home Game
On Friday, April 14 the boys baseball and girls softball teams played Dominion High School at home. The Phoenix baseball team put up an impressive game, resulting in a 14-8 win. The Phoenix softball team, who played at the same time, fell behind and lost by 11-2.
May 10, 2023
On April 14, the Phoenix varsity baseball and softball teams took on the Dominion Titans at home. After playing a tough seven innings, baseball closed out with a final score of 14-8 in favor of the Phoenix. Softball ended with the Titans taking home the win with a score of 11-2.
During the baseball game, sophomore Nikhil Midda was the starting pitcher for the Phoenix, and while the Titans started off strong with two runs during the first inning, the Phoenix were quick to follow up with two runs of their own. The back and forth continued until the fourth inning, when the Phoenix took the lead.
Within the last two innings, the Phoenix hit a home run, and the Titans were unable to catch up. Sophomore Mekhi Motilewa closed out the game by striking out the Titans batters. Senior Ari Susser, who has been playing baseball for 13 years, complimented Midda on his teamwork. “A major takeaway from the game is that Nikhil [Midda] can pitch, we weren’t really expecting that, but he came out and did what he had to do,” Susser said.
During the softball game, the Titans started at bat and were able to score six runs during the first inning. Despite a tough beginning, starting pitcher senior Rishita Valluru was able to strike out the Titans batters, giving the Phoenix a chance to bat. However, after playing a challenging seven innings, the game resulted in an 11-2 loss for the Phoenix.
Starting batter freshman Riya Cherukuri has been playing softball since she was seven years old. “My brother played baseball, so it was kind of natural for me to play softball, [him and] my entire family kind of got me into it,” Cherukuri said.
The boys baseball and girls softball teams will both have their next game at home on May 2 against the Tuscarora Huskies.
Peyton Sutherland
Q: How long have you been playing baseball?
A: [I’ve been playing for] 15 years now.
Q: Why do you play?
A: It’s always been my sport since I was a kid, and I’ve always stayed with it. It’s the most fun I’ve ever had, on the team and with the brothers.
Q: Do you model your game after anyone?
A: I model it after a few people, a few pitchers in the MLB, like Jacob DeGrom, I look up to him and a few others.
Q: How has playing impacted your high school years?
A: It’s been great, gives me something to do after school, plus work and it’s been really fun. Every practice I always have fun, I’m never bored and we always have a good time after.
Q: What has been your favorite memory from playing for Rock Ridge?
A: Last year against [Loudoun] Valley, when we played them at their school, it was a two-nothing game and I was pitching and we were going zero-zero.
Q: Do you have any major highlights or takeaways from this game?
A: Everybody needed to stay hot. We were hitting really well tonight, [it was] probably our best hitting game of the year, and if we keep this through the season we are going to pick up way more wins than we expect.
Rishita Valluru
Q – How long have you been playing softball?
A- I’ve been playing since I was six, so around eleven years.
Q- Why do you play?
A- Starting really young, I’ve grown to really love the game. My parents pushed me and I just love competing.
Q- Who got you into the sport?
A- My parents, my mom was trying to sign me up for baseball for girls, and she got a softball flier and that is how I got started.
Q- Who is your role model?
A- I guess the reason why I started pitching was [because of] the Florida Gator and Lauren Haeger, one of the softball players. I just love watching her pitch, so I love pitching.
Q: Who has impacted your game the most?
A: Probably my mom. My mom pushes me a lot, and she drives me everywhere, and always makes sure I’m on top of my game. She is just so supportive.
Q: How has playing impacted your high school years?
A: I feel like playing softball has definitely made me stand out. There are some cons to it, I haven’t been able to spend much time on homework, but it makes me more active.
Q: How does it feel playing as a senior?
A: It’s kind of sad, knowing it’s my last year. I mean, I still haven’t decided whether I’m going to play in college yet, but if I don’t, this is definitely really sad, knowing I’ve played it for so long and it’s ending soon.
Q: What was your favorite playing for Rock Ridge?
A: My favorite memory from this year is probably the game we played against John Hanley. It was one of our first games this season and it really got our spirits up. I think we won 20-0 so it was just really fun, finally getting a win.
Q: How has playing this sport at Rock Ridge affected your relationship with your peers?
A: A lot of people do come up to me asking about softball, a lot of them recognize me from it.t I’ve made some great friends while playing.