EAST PROVIDENCE — It was a day of "firsts" for the East Providence High School softball team as the Townies played their inaugural game on the reconstituted Traverse Park on campus Monday afternoon, April 3, against Prout, the most important being a first win.

The senior battery of pitcher Keira Quadros and catcher Ava Mendence was dominant both in the field and at the plate, leading East Providence to a commanding 12-2 victory over the visiting Crusaders in six innings due to the 10-Run Rule.

Quadros struck out a dozen Crusaders, including the side in both the top of the second and the third. She actually fanned eight in a row from the first through the third.

Prout finally touched her for a run in the fourth on a single, a bunt and sacrifice fly. The visitors added their other run in the fifth on a home run by Liv Ring.

The long ball was the second of the afternoon. The first-ever round-tripper at the new field came courtesy of Mendence, who crushed an Emma Manzo offering some 195 feet over the left-center field fence for a three-run jack in the bottom of the second.

"It's amazing. It's really nice. We've never had anything this nice before," Mendence said of the park. 

She and Quadros agreed the biggest adjustment so far is getting used to the way the ball bounces off the artificial playing surface and the turfed batter's boxes. The pitching circle is the only part of the field that remains the traditional dirt/clay composition.

"The biggest adjustment is probably how the ball bounces off the beads instead of grass," said Quadros. "For me, personally on the mound with the transition between the dirt and the turf, it's trying to figure out how it's going to hop whether it hits the turf or the dirt."

The day of "firsts" began with the first pitch delivered by Quadros to begin the game, a ball. The first out was a fly ball to EPHS left fielder Mariel De Jesus.

Freshman Trinity Provencher, fitting playing her first ever varsity home game, reached on an infield single to lead off the home half of the opening frame for the Townies. She later scored the first run at the park following a Prout throwing error on a Mackenzie Pimentel bunt attempt.

By the end of the first inning and after sending eight batters to the plate, East Providence was leading 2-0.

In the bottom of the second, Provencher and Josley Sosa each singled in front of Mendence, who then ripped a belt-high Manzo fastball over the fence to bring three around. Emma Bergeron later laced a double up the right-center field gap to plate two more Townies, raising their lead to a comfortable 8-2.

"I'm just happy, being the first one on the new field. It was just right down the middle and I just hit it," Mendence said of her noteworthy round-tripper. "I was just swinging. I haven't hit a home run since seventh grade, so this was also my first one in high school."

Coincidentally, Mendence's only previous scholastic home run came in one of the intra-city meetings between her Riverside Middle School squad against Martin and against the Wildcats' pitcher, Quadros.

After the early onslaught, the EPHS bats went quiet until the bottom of the sixth when the locals scored four more times to end the game.

Sosa's base hit started the spree. She moved into scoring position on a pair of ground outs. Emma Boisseau and Bergeron each had run-scoring singles.

Quadros then walked. Kayleen Kim followed with another RBI-single and Sylvie Patterson added yet one more base hit before Quadros scored the winning run after the Crusaders erred on Provencher grounder.

Bergeron went 3-for-4 with two runs scored. Provencher finished her day with two hits and two runs scored and did Boisseau. Sosa scored three times on two hits and a walk. Patterson also had a pair of hits.

The Townies, 3-0 winners on the road in their 2023 Division I season opener at Chariho late last week, improved to 2-0 on the young season. Prout, the reigning D-II champions, fell to 1-1 in its first season play atop the state's softball ladder.

"Something stuck with me that the kids said on our way home from Chariho the other day," said EPHS head coach Katie Kenahan, reflecting on the day in general.

She continued, "We turned into the school, and one of them said 'wow, look how beautiful our school is,' and then another was like 'and we have the best field in the state.' A lot of people put a lot of time and effort to give these kids such a great place to call theirs. And I thought it was a really cool moment."

The Townies are back in action Wednesday, April 5, in Providence at LaSalle. First pitch is slated for 4 p.m.