Box Score MEDFORD – Senior Raven Fournier hit a home run that gave Tufts a lead it would not relinquish in game one, then Bowdoin overcame a 5-1 deficit with two outs in the seventh inning of game two as the Jumbos and Polar Bears split a NESCAC East Division softball double-header on Saturday at Spicer Field.
Tufts (13-5, 2-1 NESCAC East) won the opener 6-2, then Bowdoin (14-5, 1-2 NESCAC East) rallied to take the nightcap 7-6 in nine innings. The Jumbos, who had won Friday's game between the teams 3-1, took the series 2-1.
Fournier hit a two-out, two-run home run to center field giving Tufts the lead in the first inning of game one. Both runs were unearned off Bowdoin starter Allison Rutz.
Jumbo freshman pitcher Kristina Haghdan worked out of mini Bowdoin rallies in the second and third to maintain the margin. However, Polar Bear senior catcher Claire McCarthy walked and scored on a Tufts error in the fourth to cut the Jumbos' lead in half (2-1).
Three of the four runs Tufts would score to pad its lead to 6-1 in the fifth were unearned. Sophomore 3B Jamie Stevens, sophomore 1B Kelsey Dion and senior SS Sara Willner-Giwerc all had rbi singles in the frame, while freshman CF Annika Han brought in a run with a safety squeeze.
Bowdoin got one back in the sixth when McCarthy hit a one-out double and scored on a single by Rutz.
Haghdan went the distance for Tufts allowing seven hits and two runs (one earned) with five K's and three walks in seven innings. Fournier was 1 for 3 with two rbis and two runs, while Dion finished 3 for 4. Freshman RF Reegan Coleman and Willner-Giwerc both had two hits.
Rutz took the loss for Bowdoin after giving up seven hits and two runs (neither earned) in three innings. McCarthy was 2 for 2 with two runs and Rutz had two hits.
A grand slam by freshman 2B Emma Della Volpe as her first collegiate home run had given Tufts an early 5-0 lead in game two. McCarthy led off the Bowdoin fourth with a single and scored unearned on a sac fly by junior SS Samantha Valdivia making it 5-1.
Then with two outs in the seventh, consecutive singles by junior 1B Caroline Rice, McCarthy and Rutz scored a run and loaded the bases. With Bowdoin down 5-2, senior 3B Natalie Edwards cleared the bases with a double down the left field line tying the game at 5-5.
Neither team scored in the eighth, but Bowdoin started the ninth with doubles by McCarthy and Rutz to take a 6-5 lead. Rutz would score on a sac fly by Valdivia to give Bowdoin a 7-5 advantage.
Tufts then rallied in the bottom of the ninth. Sophomore 1B Casey Maggiore opened with a single, then pinch runner Haghdan went to second on a walk, took third on a Bowdoin error and scored on a sac fly by freshman SS Mia Steinberg. The Jumbos loaded the bases with two outs – putting the tying run on third and the winning run on second – but Bowdoin starter Kate Hoadley completed her nine-inning victory by getting a fly ball out.
Hoadley gave up eight hits and six runs (five earned) with four strikeouts and a walk in the nine innings to pick up her fifth win. McCarthy was 3 for 5 with three runs, Rutz finished 2 for 5 with two runs and two rbis and Edwards went 2 for 4 with three rbis. O'Shea had two hits and Valdizia knocked in two runs.
Della Volpe finished game two 2 for 5 with a run and four rbis. Maggiore was 3 for 4 with a run and an rbi. The Jumbos used four pitchers, with freshman Kristi Van Meter taking the loss after coming on in the seventh.
The Jumbos remain at home to play a pair against MIT on Tuesday. Bowdoin plays a NESCAC East series against Colby next weekend.
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