BANGOR, Maine – Freshman pitcher Sophia DiCocco threw a one-hit shutout and senior Reegan Coleman scored the winning run on a passed ball as the Tufts University softball team defeated host Husson University 1-0 to win the NCAA Regional on Sunday afternoon.
Head coach Lauren Ebstein's Jumbos (21-5), who were the fifth seed in the Regional, advance to the NCAA College World Series in Salem, Virginia starting on May 27. Top-seeded Husson sees its season end with a 29-3 mark.
Tufts went 4-0 at the Regional and won three times in the seventh inning. Prior to the Husson game, they defeated Eastern Connecticut 2-1 earlier on Sunday with a run in the top of the seventh. On Friday the Jumbos opened NCAA action by scoring twice in the top of the seventh to overtake Babson 2-1.
Against Husson, Coleman hit a one-out double to right-center in the top of the seventh. She had to hold before moving to third when Rachel Moore dropped a single into right. Then the first pitch of the next at-bat was a bit high and outside and the Husson catcher couldn't glove it allowing Coleman to score the walk-off, Regional-winning run.
DiCocco and Husson's Jen Jones dominated the game from the pitcher's circle. The Jumbo freshman improved to 11-1 while striking out three and walking two today. Jones took the loss giving up six hits and an unearned run with five K's and two walks in 6.1 innings.
The only hit DiCocco gave up was erased on the base paths. Eagle Whitney Bess doubled with two outs in the third, but made the wrong decision to try to stretch it to a triple and was out by a country mile with the Tufts relay from center fielder Michelle Adelman to shortstop Mia Steinberg to Rachel Moore at third base.
DiCocco gave up a two-out walk in the first and a one-out walk in the second, and a pair of Tufts errors put runners on in the sxith and seventh. DiCocco twice fielded come-backers and Moore made a nice play charging in on a slow grounder in the sixth to keep any of those opportunities from spreading.
After Jones retired the first six Jumbos, Coleman walked to start the third and Moore bunted for a single. They advanced to second and third on a sacrifice, but with two outs Emma Della Volpe's low liner to third was snared by Husson's Kenzie Dore to keep the game scoreless.
Tufts threatened again in the fifth after another Coleman walk started it. She took second when the Husson catcher threw low on a pick-off attempt. Kat Yuzefpolsky then battled through a long at-bat and singled to shallow center. Coleman aggressively tried to score, but was thrown out at the plate.
Tufts had stranded four in scoring positon until they got some help scoring to win it in the seventh. Moore finished the game 2 for 3 for the Jumbos.
Senior shortstop Mia Steinberg, senior pitcher Kristi Van Meter and freshman pitcher Sophia DiCocco were named to the NCAA Regional All-Tournament Team. Senior Kristina Haghdan was honored as Most Outstanding Pitcher.
Game information for the College World Series is not yet available.
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