Softball Tops Wheaton, Falls to Coast Guard to End NEWMAC Tournament
| Final (8) | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | R | H | E | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Coast Guard | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 1 |
|
Wellesley | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 9 | 0 |
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | R | H | E | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Wheaton | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
|
Wellesley | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | X | 3 | 6 | 3 |
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. -- The Wellesley College softball team closed out the 2012 season with a split at the NEWMAC Tournament held at Springfield College. The #3 Blue opened the day with a 3-0 win to oust #5 Wheaton, but suffered a 5-2 loss to #6 and defending NEWMAC Champion Coast Guard to end the season.
In game one, the Blue took an early 1-0 lead in the first, as first-year Maria LaBouyer laced a one-out double and came around to score on a single by sophomore Jayne Ellis.
Wellesley extended the advantage in the fifth inning. Sophomore Lindsay Johnson led off with a single, went to third on a pair of bunts, and scored on a sac fly off the bat of junior Lauren Goldfarb to double the Blue's lead. LaBouyer followed with a single to center to plate first-year Abby Casey and make it 3-0.
Wheaton threatened in the sixth and seventh innings, but Wellesley held on for the victory.
Johnson scattered five hits and struck out four to earn her seventh win of the season. Sophomore Allison Baker suffered the loss for the Lyons, allowing six hits and three runs with one strikeout over six innings.
LaBouyer finished with two hits for Wellesley, while five differend Wheaton players added solo hits.
The win improved Coast Guard's record to 23-17 overall, while Wellesley ends the season at 19-19-1.
For the Bears, senior All-American Hayley Feindel, who earlier in the day moved into second place on the NCAA Division III all-time wins list, picked up the 119th win of her career, just one shy of tying the Division III all-time mark. She allowed nine hits, all singles, while walking one and striking out one while also setting the NCAA Division III record with 149 career starts. Her record this season improved to 16-8.
Coast Guard trailed 2-0 after Wellesley struck twice in the home half of the fifth. Goldfarb started the rally with a one-out single up the middle, followed by a LaBouyer single through the right side. After a fielder's choice kept runners on first and second with two outs, Ellis and junior Mara Blesoff each added RBI singles to right field to put Wellesley ahead.
The Bears got on the board in the sixth as freshman Jesse Richardson singled, Bastinck walked and sophomore Kaitlin Ward was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Freshman Chloe Harmon delivered a single to left which scored Richardson, but pinch runner freshman Kelsey Gray was thrown out at the plate and Wellesley kept the lead at 2-1.
Down to their final three outs, junior Stacia Sarwinski hit a shot off the top of the center field fence, just missing a game-tying homer and settling for a lead off double. Senior Jamie Kim bunted pinch runner junior Summer Dupler to third and Dupler scored on a ground out to the pitcher, making a great slide to just beat the tag tying the game 2-2.
In the eighth, sophomore Devin Fellman was placed on second as part of the international tie breaker. Senior Maddie Buchert bunted and reached as the throw to get Fellman at third was late. Richardson then reached on a fielder's choice to load the bases before Bastinck's two-run single. Harmon added another RBI single, her second in as many innings, to close the scoring.