The priorities for the Jamesville-DeWitt softball team are simple and clear for 2013 – go exactly where it did in 2012, and then go one step further.

A season ago, the Red Rams did not stop with reclaiming the Section III Class A title. It won a miraculous regional game against South Glens Falls (four runs in the bottom of the seventh to prevail 4-3), and then made it all the way to the state title game before Sayville denied them in a tight 5-4 decision.

With that final memory burning in them, head coach Phil DeAugustine’s charges got to work again, returning pitcher Kerri Keeler and many other starters this spring as it eagerly awaited for the snow to melt and for things to start again.

After two postponements of games against East Syracuse-Minoa and Fulton, J-D took the field on Thursday and were ready for action, as it jumped all over Fayetteville-Manlius with a big first inning that led to a 10-2 victory over the Hornets.

Before F-M pitcher Marisa Duval could even settle down, the Rams had batted around in the bottom of the first inning, piling up seven runs, far more than it would need since Keeler would hold the Hornets to six hits and one run while striking out eight.

At the plate, it was leadoff hitter Erika Siegel doing the most damage, with two hits, including a triple, and a career-best four RBIs. Keeler tacked on a solo home run and scored twice as Maddy Devereaux added two hits and drove in two runs. Maggie Austin and Ashley Thompson each had one RBI and Paige Sherling scored a pair of runs.

F-M didn’t get on the board until the sixth inning, but did see Patricia Miller double and drive in a run as Samantha Guillaume managed three of her team’s six hits and Victoria Devito added an RBI.

Shaking all of this off, the Hornets would have a memorable Saturday, winning the Oswego Icebreakers Tournament in the most dramatic way possible.

The Hornets, in the title game against host Oswego, prevailed 5-4 when Guillaume smashed a three-run home run in the bottom of the seventh, instantly erasing the Buccaneers’ 4-2 lead and winning the game.

Before that, it had been a tense exchange of single runs, F-M leading 2-1 thanks to tallies in the second and fourth before Oswego used runs in the fifth, sixth and seventh innings to inch to a 4-2 lead.

Every time the Bucs scored, though, Duval would prevent further damage, overcoming seven walks and three hits by earning nine strikeouts. Brittany Hill had two hits and an RBI.

This followed an opening-round game where F-M drilled Mercyhurst Prep 21-1. A six-run first inning and eight-run outburst in the third inning set the tone, giving Duval and Erin Burnett plenty of support as they split pitching duties.

Guillaume had four hits, including two doubles, and scored three runs, with Duval and Elisabeth Thomas scoring three runs apiece. Rachel O’Byrne went five-for-five and earned two RBIs. Devito also drove in two runs as Alex Lunderman managed three hits and an RBI.

J-D, meanwhile, was back home and taking an 11-9 defeat to Class AA contender Central Square. The Rams appeared to get control with a four-run third inning, but its 6-3 lead vanished when the Red Hawks scored three times in the top of the fifth.

An exchange of runs in the sixth inning followed, and Central Square got to Keeler for four more runs in the top of the seventh. J-D answered with two runs in the last of the seventh, but Red Hawks pitcher Kelsey Morgan still recorded the final out.

So the Rams lost despite two hits and three RBIs from Alyssa Robens. Siegel drove in a pair of runs, with Carly O’Hern hitting a solo home run. Thompson and Keeler also drove in runs. Central Square’s Noelle White led her side with two doubles and four RBIs.

ESM, because of the weather, didn’t take the field until Friday afternoon, when it visited West Genesee and saw one bad inning prove costly in an 11-5 defeat to the Wildcats.

Thanks to some early production, the Spartans took a 3-1 lead to the bottom of the third. Once there, though, a series of WG hits and mistakes led to nine runs, all of them off pitcher Danielle Ventrone, who took the loss.

Rachael Gocklin doubled twice and finished with two RBIs. NikkI Casella also had a pair of hits as Brittany Evans contributed an RBI. WG’s tandem of Tess Andrews and Marisa Joyce each drove in two runs.