April 13, 2001

AMHERST, MA - The red-hot Amherst College softball team extended its current winning streak to eight games with a pair of extra inning victories over visiting NESCAC rival Trinity College on Friday, upping its record to 14-4 on the season. The Jeffs took the opener 3-2 behind a 10th inning RBI single by senior left fielder Meg Nelson (Middletown, CT), while senior shortstop Shari Sakamoto (Pasadena, CA) used her third hit of the game-an RBI single in the eighth inning-to give the Jeffs a 5-4 win in the nightcap. 

Game one turned out to be a pitchers' duel as Amherst starter Lauren Peloquin (Berkley, MA) and Trinity hurler Kristi McDermott (Barrington, RI) took a scoreless tie into the eighth inning. Both teams broke through in the eighth, however, as Trinity sophomore first baseman Maureen Heneghan (Windsor Locks, CT) doubled down the left field line, scoring senior third baseman Brianna Stanton (West Des Moines, IA), before Nelson knocked in senior second baseman Carline Kelly (S. Dartmouth, MA) with a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the inning to send the game into the ninth tied 1-1. 

The score remained tied until the top of the 10th when Trinity first-year designated hitter Jennifer Kernan (Milton, MA) plated sophomore left fielder Susan Kelly (Millford, MA) with a line drive single to center field to put the Bantams up 2-1. Not to be outdone, Amherst responded with a pair of runs to win the game, as Kelly knotted the score with a clutch RBI double into the right-center field gap and later trotted home on Nelson's game-winning single. 

Peloquin (10-0) struck out five batters and scattered four hits en route to her 10th complete-game victory of the season. She has surrendered just one earned run with 103 strikeouts in 72.1 innings this season, shrinking her ERA to a miniscule 0.10. Meanwhile, Kelly paced the Jeffs offensively with three hits in the opener, including a pair of doubles, an RBI and two runs scored. Sophomore center fielder Erin Dittus (Brentwood, TN) also went two-for-four with a pair of singles for Amherst. 

Amherst jumped out to an early 4-1 lead in the nightcap as sophomore pitcher Emily Melia (Hingham, MA) drove in classmate Missy Mordy (Issaquah, WA) with an RBI single in the first, followed by a run scoring double by Nelson and a pair of RBI singles by Dittus and Sakamoto in the third. 

Trinity took advantage of some sloppy defense with three unearned runs off Melia in the sixth. After an Amherst throwing error with two outs extended the inning, Kelly doubled to left center, driving in senior shortstop Tricia Mase (Northford, CT) and junior second baseman Elizabeth Bontempo (Granby, MA) to cut the lead to 4-3. Kelly then scored on another Amherst miscue to knot the score at 4-4 and send the game into extra innings. 

Melia responded with a perfect inning in the eighth to set the stage for Sakamoto's game-winning single in the bottom half of the inning. Ironically, Sakamoto-who finished with three hits and two RBIs in the nightcap-entered the game with just two hits in her pervious 35 at bats and didn't even make a plate appearance while playing shortstop in the opener. First-year first baseman Gina Scribner (Star, ID) also went three-for-four with a run scored and finished with four hits on the afternoon. 

Melia evened her record at 4-4 with her second straight win, striking out four and with no walks in eight innings of work. First-year hurler Lauren McDowell (Martha's Vineyard, MA) took the loss for the Trinity, who fell to 2-15 with the double header sweep. Amherst returns to action on Saturday with a 1 p.m. double header against visiting NESCAC rival Tufts University.

Game One Box Score and Play-by-Play 

Game Two Box Score and Play-by-Play