After losing two games to the defending national champion Tufts Jumbos last Saturday, the softball team swept a tripleheader at Trinity on Sunday and split a doubleheader against the University of New England on Wednesday. The team is now 19-9 and second in the NESCAC East division with a 6-2 in-conference record after the first game of the Tufts three-game series was postponed due to weather.
After letting up 10 runs in one game against Tufts, but getting two shutouts against Trinity, the team is in search of consistency said Head Coach Ryan Sullivan.
“The game is hard, but we need to stay more consistent in our approach hitting, pitching, and fielding,” he said.
Two-time D-III Pitcher of the Year Allyson Fournier struck out 20 of the 22 Bowdoin batters she faced on the way to the 1-0 Jumbo victory in game one.
In the second game, the Jumbos broke a 0-0 tie in the fourth inning, ultimately beating the Polar Bears 10-0.
“In game two we had some opportunities to score early, but just could not get that next hit to push over the hill. Tufts put a few runs on the board and we had one bad inning late, which led to the six-inning game,” said Sullivan.
In the Trinity series, Emily Griffin ’17 and Julia Geaumont ’16 allowed zero earned runs in a combined 21 innings.
In the first game against the Bantams, Bowdoin was able to get on the board with an RBI double from Cielle Collins ’15 in the third inning and a Geaumont home run in the sixth. Collins and Claire McCarthy ’18 each doubled twice in the 2-0 win.
In game two, the Bears were able to take advantage of six Bantam errors to earn an 11-0 win. Geaumont pitched a five-hit shutout and helped her own cause with an early RBI double. Katie Gately ’16 led the offensive onslaught with three RBIs.
Geaumont allowed only three hits and one unearned run before Griffin finished the third game, securing a 2-1 Bowdoin victory. Gately hustled home on a passed ball to put the Bears on the board early and scored the eventual game-winning run on a fourth-inning solo home run.
“Our team handled a very long and challenging weekend, not to mention five NESCAC games in two days. We really did a great job of adjusting with our at-bats, and stayed focused and tough all day. It was fun to watch,” Sullivan said.
Bowdoin played its first game at home on Wednesday as part of a doubleheader against the University of New England, winning the first 9-1 but losing the second 3-1.
Senior night is this afternoon at 4 p.m. against NESCAC rival Colby. The team will play two more games at Colby tomorrow and three home games on Sunday, one against Tufts, and two against UMaine-Farmington.
“The Colby series is certainly important,” said Sullivan. “With our wins against both Bates and Tufts we have positioned ourselves well to get to the NESCAC playoffs, as only two of the five from the East Division make it.”