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Silver Lake softball wins first ever Division 2 state championship
WORCESTER -- Just when it seemed like Delaney Moquin's softball career at Silver Lake couldn't have gotten any better, it did.
Her 12-strikeout shutout and first-inning two-run home run powered No. 1 Silver Lake to a 4-0 win over No. 3 Bedford in the MIAA Division 2 state championship at Worcester State University on Saturday, June 14. It was the program's first-ever state title in its second ever appearance.
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Fittingly, Moquin recorded the final out of her career after getting a ground ball hit back to her, throwing to first to seal the victory.
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"She is the greatest. She is the greatest," Silver Lake coach Tony Pina said after being asked where Moquin ranks amongst players he's coached.
Silver Lake softball hoists its championship trophy after beating Bedford 4-0 in the Div. 2 state title game.
Moquin became the 40th player in state championship game history to record 10 strikeouts. The 39th was also playing in Saturday's title game: Alyx Rossi. The Bedford pitcher was named the Massachusetts Gatorade Softball Player of the Year for the 2025 season. Entering the postseason, Rossi had recorded 917 career strikeouts.
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The Boston College commit struck out 14 Silver Lake batters, but Moquin got the better of her. With two outs in the bottom of the first, Anna Craft hit a ball up the middle for a single. That allowed Moquin, hitting clean up, to get up to bat.
Wasting no time, Moquin crushed the first pitch she saw from Rossi over the left field fence to put Silver Lake up 2-0.
"I just went in there and was like, 'First pitch I see, if it's good I'm swinging,'" Moquin said. "I play her in club. I know how good she is. I know how hard she spins it. So, I just needed to make sure that if it was in my lane I'm taking it for a ride."
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Moquin was intentionally walked on her next two plate appearances.
"I know I'm going to bet on Delaney ever single time," Pina said. "We kind of joked around and said 'Congratulations, you won that trophy, we're going to win this one.' That was Delaney's motivation as well."
The Silver Lake softball team celebrates its MIAA Division 2 state championship win over Bedford on Saturday at Worcester State University.
Moquin, a Fairfield University commit, ends her high school career as the program's all-time strikeouts leader, home run leader, and now, a state champion.
"It definitely hasn't set in yet," Moquin said after the game. "The whole game I had a stomach ache, but afterwards it was like a relief."
As expected, the rest of the game was a pitcher's duel, with Moquin's first-inning home run being the only runs scored until the bottom of the sixth inning. Madyson Bryan put the ball in play and drove in two runs on a Bedford error to put the Lakers up 4-0 heading to the final inning.
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In the top of the seventh, Bedford put runners on first and second with two outs, but Moquin sealed the deal with the throw out to first.
Silver Lake finally finished the job after some disappointing exits in the state tournament over the last few years. Last spring, the Lakers were also the No. 1 seed, and were upset by No. 9 Marblehead in the Elite Eight. In 2022, Silver Lake made the Elite Eight as the No. 9 seed, but fell to Westfield.
So Saturday's storybook ending was three years in the making, and according to Pina, it made it all worth it.
"The seniors this year made it a point to get to that next level," Pina said. "To see them, grow and evolve and culminate into something like this. If Lifetime is looking for a movie idea, tell them to give me a call."
This article originally appeared on The Patriot Ledger: Silver Lake softball beats Bedford in Division 2 state championship
