Sirens couldn’t be far. They never missed a game at Branch Brook Park.

Four hospitals stand within two miles of its softball fields, bringing speeding, shrieking ambulances through the neighboring Newark streets as often as planes fly past Citi Field. 

Sarah Taffet had played there for years. Her father, Paul, was familiar with the blaring intrusions. They did their job. They couldn’t be ignored.

On Oct. 3, 2021, Sarah returned to her youth field with her Fordham teammates to participate in an offseason fall tournament. First, the Rams faced Seton Hall. Then Villanova.