AMHERST, MA – The Amherst College softball team rebounded from Friday's 3-0 loss to Wesleyan University by sweeping the Cardinals in a NESCAC West doubleheader Saturday afternoon. The Lord Jeffs capitalized on three Wesleyan errors to win the first game, 11-6, before Annemarie Iker '12 (Mill Valley, CA) delivered a two-out walk-off single to give Amherst a 4-3 victory in the nightcap.
With the second game tied at 3-3 heading into the bottom of the seventh, Kaitlin Silkowitz '14 (Scarsdale, NY) led off with an infield single on a very close play at first base. Silkowitz stole second and moved to third on a flyout to center, but Wesleyan's Laura Getchell '14 retired the next batter on a popup for the second out. Iker then stepped to the plate and provided her second game-winning hit in as many weekends, crushing the ball deep into the gap in left center to bring in Silkowitz for the clinching run.
Silkowitz led Amherst by going 2-for-3 in each game, adding two RBIs and four runs scored on the day. Allee Beatty went 3-for-8 for the Cardinals, while Alexis Kral went 3-for-6 and scored three runs.
The teams combined for 17 runs on 21 hits in the first game, with Arielle Doering '14 (Branchburg, NJ) earning the win (4-2) by throwing the first six innings for the Jeffs. The Cardinals started to put together a rally in the top of the seventh, but Theresa Kelley '13 (Los Angeles, CA) came on in relief and struck out all three batters she faced. Caitlyn Grudzinski took the loss (4-5) after allowing seven runs—all unearned—in two-thirds of an inning of relief.
Wesleyan scored in six of seven innings in the opener, but Amherst's seven-run third proved to be the difference maker. Grudzinski relieved Dana Levy to begin the third inning and induced three consecutive ground balls, but one of those three resulted in an error and the Lord Jeffs capitalized by opening the floodgates. Getchell would pitch the final 3.1 innings for Wesleyan, allowing only one run on three hits.
Doering struck out four and walked five, allowing six runs on 10 hits in six innings. Silkowitz, Reilly Horan '13 (Darien, CT) and Carolyn Miller '14 (Leominster, MA) each had two hits and two RBIs, while Kelley was 1-for-3 and drove in three runs.
Amherst took a 1-0 lead in the second game on an RBI-double by Kelley in the first inning, but Wesleyan tied things up in the fourth when Talia Bernstein '11 doubled to left center to score Levy. The Jeffs regained the lead in the fifth on an RBI-double from Horan, but the Cardinals answered with two unearned runs in the sixth. Levy singled through the left side of the infield to score Amy Lindland, and Chrissy Bello '12 followed with a double down the left field line to give the visitors a 3-2 lead.
The Jeffs knotted the score at 3-3 in the bottom of the sixth on an RBI-single up the middle by Jillian Masi '11 (Stamford, CT) off Getchell, who had just relieved starting pitcher Jess Shevins '14. After the Cardinals failed to score in the top of the seventh, Silkowitz and Iker led the charge and capped off the dramatic win.
Getchell took the loss to drop to 2-2, while Shevins did not factor into the decision after allowing three runs on six hits in 5.2 innings. Kelley earned the complete-game victory to improve to 7-7, striking out seven and walking none while allowing three runs on six hits. Silkowitz, Iker and Levy were the only players with multiple hits in the nightcap.
The Lord Jeffs will wrap up a pivotal weekend when they host Hamilton College tomorrow at 2 p.m. The Cardinals will host Williams College next weekend in a crucial three-game series.
GAME 1 BOX SCORE
GAME 2 BOX SCORE
