The softball team found itself at a crossroads heading into the final weekend of the regular season, with a series win against Trinity and a strong showing versus Colby yielding the No. 1 seed in the NESCAC tournament but a loss potentially ceding the two East division playoff spots to Trinity and Bowdoin.
With their season on the line, the Jumbos (22-16 overall, 9-3 NESCAC East) rose to the occasion, taking two of three games at Trinity before capping off a fine weekend with a thrilling, 1-0 walkoff victory over Colby at Spicer Field.
"At the start of the season, this is probably not the finish we would've signed up for," senior co-captain pitcher Izzie Santone said. "However, we knew that we controlled our own destiny and we just had to take care of our own business. Fortunately, we were able to do that."
The Mules came to Medford yesterday with a woeful 1-10 record in NESCAC play and no hope of earning a postseason, but with nothing to lose, they delivered arguably their best performance of the spring.
Both starting pitchers — sophomore Lauren Becker for Colby and Santone for Tufts — were in top form. Neither allowed a runner to move past second base until the seventh inning, but fortunately for the Jumbos, Becker blinked first.
After Santone retired the side in order in the top of the seventh, sophomore second baseman Emily Beinecke led off the bottom of the frame with a sharply hit single up the middle. Freshman left fielder Sara Hedtler then added another single. After striking out the next batter, Becker looked poised to quell the Jumbos' threat and force extra innings. Senior right fielder Kim Miner had other plans.
With two outs and the winning run in scoring position, Miner slapped a game-winning single down the right-field line. Beinecke raced home from second base to ecstatic applause from the home crowd, and the Jumbos took the game from the Mules, 1-0.
Santone tossed a complete-game, six-hit shutout en route to her tenth win of the season. Becker was saddled with the loss, despite surrendering just the one run in 6 2/3 innings of work.
"We did what we had to do this weekend," junior co-captain first baseman Lena Cantone said. "But now it's on to our next order of business — that's our mentality right now."
Prior to clinching the East division against Colby, the Jumbos needed to take two of a three-game set against league powerhouse Trinity, which entered the weekend boasting a 19-9 overall record but, more impressively, a 7-2 mark against NESCAC opponents.
Although Trinity overwhelmed Tufts in the series finale, winning 12-2 in just five innings thanks to the mercy rule, the damage had already been done. The first game of Saturday and Friday's opener featured markedly better efforts from the Jumbos.
Game one of Saturday's doubleheader was a laugher that featured 21 hits and seven fielding errors between the two teams. After digging themselves out of an early 3-1 hole, the Jumbos scored five runs in the top of the second inning and never looked back.
Freshman Lauren Giglio (5-3) earned the win for Tufts, hurling four innings in relief and allowing just one run, after sophomore starter Rebecca DiBiase lasted just three frames. Meanwhile, the Jumbos lineup — led by Beinecke's three hits, including a home run, and five RBIs — battered Bantams freshman starter Katherine Poulos for 12 runs (six earned) in five innings.
The series opener on Friday afternoon was by far the tightest affair of the series. In a contest that featured two comebacks, the Jumbos finally prevailed in 13 innings with a hard-earned 5-4 victory.
The winning run came on an RBI single off the bat of freshman third baseman Kayla Holland in the top of the 13th inning. It was the second time the Jumbos had taken a one-run advantage in extra frames, but this time the Bantams were unable to mount a comeback.
DiBiase set the Trinity offense down in order in the bottom of the 13th, closing out 6 1/3 strong innings of relief on the mound for the Jumbos and picking up the win. Santone pitched the first 6 2/3 frames for Tufts, allowing three runs despite recording an impressive 14 outs on groundballs. Senior Kristen Anderson pitched all 13 innings for Trinity, though her longevity went unrewarded as she fell to 9-3."We knew what we had to do heading into the Trinity series and that was win the series," DiBiase said. "We knew it wasn't going to be easy, and even though we didn't play up to our standards, we still fought out two tough victories. We just could not accept losing."
By winning three out of four in conference play over the weekend, the Jumbos clinched the right to host the NESCAC championships. The accomplishment marked the Jumbos' seventh straight season atop the NESCAC East standings. Tufts has earned at least a share of first place in all but one season (2004) since the NESCAC era began in 2000.
The team will have a few days to celebrate before turning its attention to the next challenge: winning the NESCAC title. Tufts will open the tournament at Spicer Field on Friday afternoon, facing the West division's No. 2 seed, Williams, at 2:30 p.m.
"We're thrilled with what we've been able to accomplish towards the end of the season," Santone said. "But we're not satisfied at all. We still have our hearts set on winning the championship, and that starts with Williams, our bitter rival, on Friday."
