Newtown High School's softball team rebounded from its first loss, a 10-6 come-from-behind setback to visiting New Milford on April 15, with a 16-3 win at Stratford on April 20. The Nighthawks improved to 5-1 overall.

The New Milford game began in most unusual fashion, with the Nighthawks opening up a 5-0 lead through three innings, without getting the ball out of the infield, and only one hit — a pop up misplayed into a single. A combination of seven walks, two errors, a hit batter, and three wild pitches contributed to Newtown's offense.

NHS wound up with six hits, including a double by Gillian Boughan, who drove in two runs, but was overcome by a late New Milford rally. The Green Wave scored a run in the fourth and four in the fifth on a pair of two-run home runs to tie the score. The Nighthawks reclaimed the lead in the bottom of the fifth. Olivia Doersch singled off the glove of the diving first baseman, B.B. Diorio walked, and Elena Burdo worked the count full before delivering a two-out, hard-hit RBI single to right for a 6-5 NHS advantage.

New Milford struck for three runs in the sixth and tacked on two more in the seventh. The Wave kept up its winning ways to improve to 7-0 this spring. Newtown got back into the win column in a visit to Stratford on April 20. The Nighthawks earned a six-inning, mercy-rule triumph to improve to 5-1 this spring.

The victory featured an eight-run fourth inning, 13 total Nighthawk hits, two triples and four runs batted by Lila Accousti, and a strong effort in the pitcher's circle as well as in the batter's box by Mia Napolitano. The Nighthawk pitcher allowed only three hits and one unearned run, issued three walks, and fanned nine batters. At the plate, she collected two hits and four runs batted in.

Addy Cordova contributed a pair of hits, an RBI, and three runs scored out of the leadoff spot; Accousti had three hits; Reagan Schenzer had a hit and three runs scored; and Gabby Ansman, Doersch, Boughan, and Burdo each had a hit, RBI, and run scored. Eight Nighthawks worked nine walks, with Doersch drawing a base on balls twice.

Newtown jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the first inning, with Accousti driving in the first run on a single. An error, RBI single by Doersch, and Burdo RBI fielder's choice accounted for the other runs in the frame. After Stratford cut the lead in half with two in the bottom of the first inning, Ansman’s second-inning RBI single made it 5-2. Stratford again got to within a couple of runs by answering with one in the bottom of the second.

After a scoreless third, the Nighthawks put the game away with that eight spot in the fourth. Napolitano's two-run single and Accousti's two-run triple were big hits in the frame.

Sports Editor Andy Hutchison can be reached at andyh@thebee.com.