In a huge upset, the 15-13 Bridgewater State Bears scraped out a 2-1 win against the 28-3 Jumbos in the first of two games at Alumni Park on Wednesday.
Tufts came back in the second game to sink the Bears 11-0 in five innings, but the loss gave them some pause as they look toward the playoffs.
Tufts is currently ranked sixth in the country, 9-0 in the NESCAC and in the top two in the region, but Wednesday's loss snapped a 10-game winning streak, as the Bears were able to lock down the Jumbos' offense throughout the game.
The Jumbos simply could not get it going offensively and stranded many runners during crucial run-scoring opportunities.
The offense had trouble getting a read on Bridgewater State junior pitcher Amber White, who allowed only three hits and one run in a complete game.
According to coach Cheryl Milligan, the loss came as a surprise, as the Jumbos struggled on offense, where they have not had much trouble this year.
"It was sort of one of those 'How did that just happen?' kind of losses," Milligan said. "I asked the team afterwards what was going on, and they didn't have a whole lot of answers. Not really sure why [White] was so puzzling to us, but she certainly had our number [Wednesday]."
The Jumbos broke open a lead during the second inning when sophomore Kris Parr rounded the bases on two errors from the Bears, but Tufts would not score again.
Brianna DeNucci gave Bridgewater State the lead in bottom of the fifth with a double down the right-field line, and the Jumbos left two runners stranded on base in the seventh to close out a disappointing contest.
"We never engaged; we couldn't figure out the pitcher," junior catcher Jo Clair said. "We couldn't string together the hits we needed to win the game."
Despite trouble on the offensive end, the defense managed to keep the game tight.
Both Milligan and Clair highlighted the performance of senior Aly Moskowitz, who pitched a strong game giving up only four hits and two runs.
"Ali pitched very well, certainly well enough to win," Milligan said. "We just didn't get the job done at plate."
A handful of fielding errors at key moments also contributed to the loss, but the most significant part was the inability to pull through with clutch hits.
According to Milligan, the Jumbos came into the game just a little bit too passive.
"We certainly always expect to go out and play a good game. We did not come out with our usual amount of enthusiasm," Milligan said. "Our ability level certainly did not shine through in the first game."
The Jumbos came out in the second game of the doubleheader with a vengeance, however, and buried the Bears early on.
Senior Emily Beinecke got the Jumbos moving in the first inning with a single up the middle that drove freshman Christina Raso in, and though the inning ended with three runners left on base, the Jumbos picked up where they left off two innings later.
The third inning started off with a single from sophomore Kris Parr and a double from junior Kayla Holland, and continued through the entire batting order for a total of eight hits and ten runs.
Clair sealed the deal mid-inning with a homer to left field, which brought in two RBIs and which was her eighth home run of the season.
According to Clair, the Jumbos recovered well from their earlier loss and were able to play well for the game at hand.
"I think the mentality of the second game was a lot better," she said. "We had a greater sense of urgency to win the second game than the first game. After losing it was a good thing that we were able to put that behind us momentarily and come out and win the second game."
