BABSON PARK, Mass. (taken from a Babson College press release) — The Brandeis University softball team used a Madison Sullivan (Dover, N.H./Dover) grand slam in their biggest inning of the season, a 10-run fourth, to hang on to defeat host Babson College, 10-9, in the opener of a doubleheader today. The Beavers rallied for a 9-1 win in the second game.
Brandeis, which has split four of its last five twinbills, is 14-14 on the season. Babson concludes their regular season at 23-16.
Babson got off to a fast start in game one, scoring three times in the first two innings. First-year Samantha Smith (Hillsborough, N.J.) drove in senior Lindsey Schmid (New Canaan, Conn.) and sophomore Leslie Moore (Atkinson, N.H.) with a two-out single in the first, and junior Maya Lacy (East Mill Creek, Utah) homered to left with one out in the second to make it 3-0.
The Judges, who saw their first 12 batters reach base in the fourth, used six hits, two walks and two errors to plate 10 runs. Juniors Jordan Buscetto (Old Lyme, Conn./Old Lyme), Madison Gagnon (Westlake Village, Calif./Westlake), and Danielle Novotny (Milford, N.J./Delaware Valley) produced three straight RBI singles to tie the game. The sacks were packed for Sullivan, who followed with her grand slam to left to make it 8-3. It was Sullivan's fourth homer of the season, tying her for the team lead. It was her eighth career round-tripper and first grand slam. Brandeis tacked on two unearned runs later in the frame to grab a seven-run lead.
The Beavers cut their deficit to 10-5 with back-to-back run-scoring singles by Lacy and junior Madison Dinaso (Ardsley, N.Y.) in the fourth. Classmate Emily Morris (Wolcott, Conn.) and Lacy added RBI knock's in the fifth, and Dinaso followed with a two-out double to score Morris to get within 10-8.
Smith made it a one-run game in the last of the sixth as she plated Moore with a two-out double to the gap in right center. Morris led off the seventh with an infield single and moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by Lacy. Dinaso hit a shot to center that was tracked down by first-year Amanda Shore (San Jose, Calif./Archbishop Mitty), who then doubled up Morris up at second to end the game.
Gagnon and Novotny each finished with two hits, while sophomore Allison Hecht (Melville, N.Y./Half Hollow Hills East) and senior Cori Coleman (Burr Ridge, Ill./Hinsdale South) both scored a pair of runs for the Judges. First-year Sadie-Rose Apfel (Stamford, Conn./Westhill) earned the victory with 1.1 of relief and sophomore Melissa Soleimani (Somerset, Mass./Somerset Berkley Regional) gave up just two hits over 2.1 innings to record the save.
Smith was 3-for-3 with three RBI and two runs scored, Lacy went 3-for-3 with three RBI, Morris finished 3-for-4 with two runs scored and an RBI for the Green and White. Senior Meghan Hayes (Robbinsville, N.J.) suffered the loss after giving up six earned runs on five hits and three walks over 3.0 innings.
After both teams stranded runners in the first inning of game two, the Beavers jumped on top with four two-out runs in the bottom of the second. Lacy drove in Morris and Smith with a double to right, and Moore came through with a two-run single to score Dinaso and Lacy to make it 4-0.
Judges' sophomore Leah Shapiro (Beverly Hills, Calif./Beverly Hills) walked and later scored on a double steal in the top of the third, but Babson responded with three more two-out runs in the bottom of the frame. Dinaso walked to force in sophomore Meaghan Merullo (Winchester, Mass.) and Schmid drove in Lacy and Smith with a bloop single to center for a 7-1 lead.
Brandeis sophomore Samantha Wroblewski (Delray Beach, Fla./Spanish River) got two quick outs in the bottom of the fourth, but the Beavers again rallied for a pair of two-out runs. Smith and Morris reached on consecutive errors, Hayes walked to load the bases, and Lacy drove in Morris and Smith with a bloop single to left to make it an eight-run game.
Hayes (14-6), who tossed her 17th complete game of the season, got a double play to erase a lead-off single in the top of the fifth, to close out the five-inning win. She gave up just the one earned run on three hits while striking out four.
Schmid went 2-for-3 with two RBI, Smith had two hits and scored three times, and Moore drove in a pair of runs for the Green and White.
Wroblewski (6-11) allowed seven earned runs on nine hits while striking out three over four innings in the circle for the Judges.
Brandeis is back in action tomorrow when they host Framingham State in a doubleheader starting at 10 a.m.