WINSTED—Stacey Zematis told her team time and time again that it had nothing to lose heading into Wednesday’s Berkshire League tournament championship game.
The Highlanders listened, more importantly believed and then went out and made history.
After losing twice to an undefeated Nonnewaug team that had posted 21 straight wins this season, Northwestern turned the tables on the Chiefs in the league title game, pulling out a 7-6 win.
History was made because Northwestern—which has won nine Berkshire League softball titles since 2008—became the first team to ever win a tournament title.
This spring was the first time the Berkshire League has held a postseason league tournament.
“I think it’s kinda cool,” said Zematis, who was a player at Northwestern when the team won its first-ever Berkshire League title in 1994. “Again, I said to the girls, we have nothing to lose. Go out there, have fun and we have a chance to make history here and be the first team to win the Berkshire League tournament that we’ve never had before, so it really is kind of cool.”
A year ago, the Highlanders were hovering around .500 for the season and thoughts of any titles were far removed from the rebuilding process.
This season, however, Zematis has seen her young team—which boasts just three seniors—grow up in hurry.
The squad posted a 17-3 regular season record, with two of those losses coming to Nonnewaug—a 9-2 loss in the second game of the season on April 10, and a 12-8 defeat back on May 2.
“Nonnewaug is so young and so talented,” Zematis said. “We were in two games with them. It wasn’t like we got blown out, so I felt we could, if the stars aligned, things could go our way.”
Things did go Northwestern’s way early as the Highlanders showcased how much the team has grown this season.
After jumping on top of Nonnewaug by scoring twice in the top of the first, the Chiefs did answer by scoring four runs in the home half of the inning.
Instead of rolling over and losing for a third time, however, the Highlanders responded with two more runs in the second to tie the game.
A run in the third even gave Northwestern Regional the lead.
Suddenly, the team with nothing to lose was a team that started to believe it could win.
The two teams battled each other into the top of the sixth. Tied 6-6, the Highlanders were able to scratch out one more run.
Taylor Kelley led off the sixth with a single to right field. Mackenzie Janco then singled on a ground ball to the shortstop, giving the Highlanders (19-3) runners on first and second with nobody out.
Kelley, a junior, and Janco, a senior, are the first two names Zematis writes on her line-up card. Both are captains.
“I just put my best three hitters first and hope that they get on a lot and create for us,” Zematis said. “They did that yesterday.”
Mollie Spencer, who already had two RBIs in the game, grounded into a fielder’s choice, which forced Janco out at second. Kelley advanced to third on the play putting her 60 feet away from putting Northwestern into the lead.
Makenna Blische then plated her teammate with an infield hit, giving Northwestern that 7-6 lead.
That left the game in the hands of sophomore pitcher Maribelle Roach. Over the final two innings, Roach retired six of the seven batters she faced.
“I think one of the biggest differences in our team this year is my pitcher,” Zematis said. “We graduated a senior last year that was, she’s a great girl and she pitched strikes, but this year’s pitcher, Maribelle, she got a little more speed, a couple more pitches and she’s just a go-getter.”
Roach threw 130 pitches in the game, 85 for strikes. She gave up no earned runs in the contest, striking out nine and walking five.
She is just one of the younger players on the roster who will get a chance to repeat as Berkshire League tourney champs in 2026.
In fact, Zematis only had one senior in the starting lineup in the championship game. That was Janco in the No. 2 hole.
Classmates Alexa Colpitts and Grace Curtiss certainly both brought senior leadership to the bench, helping oversee a program that has 11 freshmen and six sophomores on its overall roster.
How young are the Highlanders?
Roach, the sophomore, throws to Laney Hayes, a junior behind the plate.
Behind the pitcher, the infield is made up of Spencer, a junior, at first; Ryane Longhi, a sophomore at second; Kelley, the junior at shortstop; and Janco, the senior, at third.
In the outfielder, from left to right, respectively, are: Kaitlyn Maxwell, a freshman; Sam Barbagallo, a junior; and Makenna Blische, another freshman.
“I look forward to next year having everybody come back and work with it,” Zematis said. “It’s been a busy year. It’s been a lot of learning. I had no outfielders coming in really from last year, so I was teaching some of them how to catch a fly ball that I never thought I would have to teach. It can be a challenge, but everybody just worked so hard.”
The Highlanders are now flying high heading into the Class M state tournament, buoyed by the momentum of a modest three-game winning streak, two of which gave Northwestern the Berkshire League tourney title.
Zematis knows whatever comes next is gravy on an already special season.
“I’m hoping the momentum will help us,” she said. “Hopefully the girls can have the confidence to know we can stay with anybody. I’ve told the kids champions are not always the teams with the best talent, because we’re a tight-knit group and I think that’s a huge part about team sports. I think it makes or a breaks a team sometimes and we’ve really started coming together towards the end of the season.”
Heading into the Berkshire League tournament, the Highlanders had nothing to lose.
They went out and made history instead.
Now they’ll try to do it again in the state tournament—which is another trophy the Northwestern Regional Highlands have never won.
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