Despite a hectic schedule that included four games in two days, the softball team posted a 4-1 record this week, including a three-game sweep of division rival Bates.
After Bowdoin took down Bates 5-1 in last Friday’s NESCAC opener, the team’s Sunday doubleheader was rescheduled for Tuesday, leaving the Polar Bears with a double doubleheader of sorts: Bates in Lewiston on Tuesday and Southern Maine (USM) on Wednesday at St. Joseph’s College in Standish. Bowdoin completed its sweep of the Bobcats by winning 4-1 and 5-2 and then split the games with USM, losing 9-1 before rebounding for a 12-4 victory.
Senior captain and rightfielder Tory Rusch said the team was well-prepared for such a busy slate of games.
“Considering that in Florida we played 16 games essentially back-to-back, our team was reminded that that is definitely something we need to work on,” she said. “However, given the obstacles that we have already had to deal with up north regarding our opponents and the weather, it appears to me that our team has already begun getting better at remaining ‘in the game’ and being able to push through tough competition in order to win.”
While Bates scored the first run of Friday’s contest in the bottom of the second, the Bears answered in the fifth inning with back-to-back doubles from Marissa O’Toole ’17 and Cielle Collins ’15.
In the top of the sixth, Adriane Krul ’15 launched a solo home run to put the Bears up by two. Katie Gately ’16 and O’Toole each contributed RBI singles that scored Emily Griffin ’17 and Lauren Nguyen ’17.
Julia Geaumont ’16 pitched lights-out for the Bears, allowing only two hits, striking out seven and walking none. O’Toole, who went 2-3 with two RBIs and a run scored, led Bowdoin’s offensive play.
On Tuesday, the Bears again travelled to Lewiston and took two more from Bates, upping their in-conference record to a NESCAC-best 3-0.
In the first game, Geaumont struck out six Bobcats, allowing only seven hits over seven innings and only one earned run to pick up the win for the Bears. She wasted no time offensively, giving Bowdoin a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first with a two-out home run.
The Bears advanced their lead in the bottom of the fifth on a double from Krul that scored Claire McCarthy ’18 and Lauren O’Shea ’18. The Bobcats finally scored in the sixth inning, but Bowdoin successfully closed out a 4-1 victory.
In the next game, Griffin pitched all seven innings for Bowdoin. Her commanding performance included striking out nine Bobcats and giving up only two runs on eight hits.
Bowdoin took another 1-0 first-inning lead on a fielder’s choice, and O’Toole advanced the Bear’s cause with a two-run homer to give Bowdoin a 3-0 advantage in the fourth. After picking up two insurance runs in the fifth, Bowdoin smoothly cruised to a 5-2 win.
“We ended up sweeping all three games against Bates, so it’s safe to say that we started our NESCAC season on a high,” said Rusch. “It’s fueled our fire to make us want to maintain that high level of competition against the rest of our opponents in these coming weeks.”
All was quiet in the first of Wednesday’s two nonconference games against USM until the fourth inning, when the Huskies exploded for six runs. USM pitcher Erika Millett made sure the Polar Bears never sniffed a comeback, and the Huskies won by a final score of 9-1.
Bowdoin rebounded strongly in the second game, leading by eight runs after five innings to invoke the NCAA’s mercy rule and winning 12-4. O’Toole’s three-run home run and Nicole Nelson’s two RBIs led the way for the Bears. Geaumont picked up her eighth win on the mound, the second-most in the NESCAC.
Thursday was a brief respite for the Polar Bears, as they return to action at 4 p.m. today at home against Tufts. They will then play a doubleheader against Tufts tomorrow and a tripleheader at Trinity on Sunday.
“This weekend is most likely going to be our toughest weekend that I have ever encountered on the team,” said Rusch. “Every opponent that we face is tough if we make it that way, but being that Tufts is the defending D-III national champion, they are for sure going to be some of our strongest competition.
“Trinity has also always given us some close games and beating them is going to be really important in order for our team to seal our spot in the NESCAC tournament at the end of the season,” she said.