The softball team has played just well enough to win during its eight-game winning streak since returning from California. Key defensive stops, solid pitching and timely hitting masked defensive sloppiness and unpredictability down the lineup.
That barely-cutting-it play got the team by Bowdoin for a 6-5, 13-0 sweep in its NESCAC East opener, but fell short on Sunday, as a split 4-1 win, 4-3 loss doubleheader against Western Connecticut snapped the team's 11-game winning streak.
A Saturday downpour cancelled Sunday's planned round-robin doubleheader at Wheaton against Western Connecticut and the host, so Western Connecticut came to Spicer Field on Sunday. The Jumbos encountered little resistance in the opener, holding on to an early lead for the 4-1 win before falling 4-3 in the second game for their first loss since returning East.
"I'm disappointed because we had a lot of chances to win, not that our streak ended or even so much that we lost," coach Cheryl Milligan said. "We didn't come through when needed to, and maybe that's a lesson we had to learn."
While the infield recovered from a messy day on Saturday to turn in some more consistent field play, the Tufts bats were slow in Sunday's matchups, and a few key base-running errors and poorly-timed outs reduced the run potential of the 12 hits they managed to drum.
In the second game, a popped-up bunt from freshman Alison Drobiarz turned into a double play that caught freshman Roni Herbst too far from first base, clearing the bases before sophomore Danielle Lopez smacked her ninth home run of the season.
An under-producing middle lineup stranded its leadoff slappers on base and took the air out of a strong plate performance by sophomore Megan Cusick, who batted seventh with three hits but little to show for it.
"We can't get into a situation with two outs, our best hitter up, and no one on base," coach Cheryl Milligan said. "[Also], the middle of lineup wasn't really producing, so [Cusick] is getting to the plate either leading off or with no one on. There should be people on base for her, but there aren't. You can take all the numbers you want, but if a kid doesn't see a pitcher well, they're not going to produce."
The Jumbos got on the board early with two runs in the first, but promptly gave up three on an error, a double, and two walks from sophomore Erica Bailey, who picked up the loss with three earned runs, three walks, and five hits in six innings. The Colonials added another run in the third on Bailey's third walk, and the Jumbos were never able to recover, with Lopez's homer providing the only other run as Tufts lost 4-3.
"We're just starting to get used to ourselves; we aren't as settled as I think we can be," Lopez said. "We have a lot of talent, but we haven't really shown it yet. Last year, our offense was so strong that we never really worried about our defense, but this year, we have to back up our defense with our offense."
Most Jumbos made contact, with only three strikeouts, but two infield pop-ups and five deep fly-outs cut offensive production short. Freshman Maya Ripecky sent three balls deep, all of which ended up in Colonial gloves, and a possible game-tying shot from sophomore Erica Bailey ran into a stiff wind in the bottom of the sixth.
"We can't always shoot for the fences," Milligan said. "Pop-ups are going to be outs more often than hits, especially when the wind is blowing in. Until we learn [to hit] down and hard with the bats, we're going to run into outs."
In the first game, Tufts was never able to get any offensive momentum, scoring a single run in each of the first three innings. Despite a combined 3-for-7 showing from Drobiarz and Herbst at the top two spots and Lopez's 3-for-4 showing at the number three slot, the Jumbos' lineup remained fragmented by a slow four-five-six part of the order and was never able to put together any offensive rhythm.
Still, a single run in each of the first, second, third, and sixth innings gave Tufts all it would need to hold off a lethargic Colonials team.
"We executed a little better in the first game, and [Western Conn] put less pressure on us," Milligan said. "The game was moving really slow, we were relaxed, and I didn't feel like they were pushing.
The losses exposed a key defensive weakness for the Jumbos in their ability to field the bunt. The Colonials poured in three runs in the second inning of game two on four consecutive bunts and a base-clearing double. While not the result of any Tufts errors, inexperience at the corners - sophomore Mara Dodson at third and freshman Cara Hovhanessian at first are both playing in new spots - has set up a liability in the Jumbos' defense.
"[In the second game], they bunted a lot," Milligan said. "They had that one three-run inning and we didn't make the plays we needed to. We need to be a step faster; our corners are new and they're not practiced. We expect [opponents to bunt] until we prove that we can field them."
Despite the split Western Conn doubleheader, the Jumbos picked up two key wins on Saturday, sweeping Bowdoin in their NESCAC East opener, 6-5 and 13-0.
The team rode 26 hits, including a pair of three-run homers from sophomore Lopez and senior co-captain Jess Barrett, and some slightly improved fielding at key positions to take both games from the Polar Bears.
In the second game, a six-run second inning, courtesy of four hits and three Bowdoin errors, put Tufts on pace for the 13-0 mercy-run win. Hovhanessian went 3-for-3 with three RBI, including a two-run, bases-loaded single to center that sparked the run in the second. Junior Annie Ross was also 3-for-3, and Lopez was 2-for-2 with three RBI.
The first game was much closer, as three Tufts errors let in two unearned Polar Bear runs and kept Bowdoin in the game. Senior co-captain Sarah Conroy pitched all seven innings to earn her fourth win of the season and remained tough as the Polar Bears challenged in the final inning. A leadoff double and an RBI single pulled the Polar Bears within two, but Conroy retired the side with a harmless popup and grounder.
"A lot of it has to do with the ebb and flow of the game," Barrett said. "Any given second one team can be on and one team can be off, and you never know what's going to happen. Defensively, the first game could have been better, but we did a much better job in second game."
