Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2 MEDFORD – Casey Maggiore homered in the bottom of the third in game one to give Tufts a lead it would not relinquish, then Sophia DiCocco and Nicole Russo pitched a combined shutout while the offense exploded in the middle innings in game two as the Jumbo softball team swept Colby College in NESCAC East action on Saturday at Spicer Field. The scores were 4-2 and 11-0. The Jumbos were playing at home for the first time since 2019 after COVID forced the cancellation of the entire 2020 season.
Tufts struck first in game one when Michelle Adelman hit a one-out single and scored on base hit by Josie Steinberg in the second. Colby answered in the next half-inning as Lauren Ilano walked, was sacrificed to second and scored on a single by Chloe Wilcox.
Maggiore's decisive blow to left field came with two outs in the third. The Jumbos then added an unearned run in the fourth on an rbi single from Kat Yuzefpolsky. Adelman cut down a Mules runner at the plate in the sixth, but Colby would add a run later in the inning on a base hit by Hannah Masterson to close within 3-2. The Jumbos had an insurance run in the bottom of the sixth as Steinberg led off with a single, stole second and scored on a pinch-hit single by Keila McCabe.
Senior pitchers Kristina Haghdan and Kristi Van Meter combined on the win for Tufts. Haghdan started and went five innings allowing three hits and a run, while Van Meter entered in the sixth and got a save while giving up three hits and a run. Yuzefpolsky and Steinberg both had two hits for Tufts in the opener, while Wilcox and Logan Luebbe each had a pair for the visitors. Sam Ahlholm pitched well for Colby, allowing eight hits and three earned runs in six innings.
DiCocco (4 IP, 3 H, 0 BB, 1 K) and Russo (1 IP, 1 H, 0 R) kept Colby at bay in game two. DiCocco stranded a runner on third with two outs in the fourth to help preserve the shutout.
Tufts scored four runs in the third and seven more in the fourth to take command of the game. They combined for nine hits in the two frames and benefitted from three Colby errors. Yuzefpolsky, Mia Steinberg and McCabe each scored in both innings. Adelman had a two-run double in the third, while Josie Steinberg singled home a run and scored in the fourth.
Reegan Coleman's two hits paced Tufts in game two. Payton Crowley took the pitching loss for Colby (3 IP,7 H, 5 ER).
The teams will meet up again tomorrow for a twinbill in Waterville, Maine.
