MEDFORD, Mass. -- Rachel Lovejoy squeezed home Talia Bloxham in the top of the seventh inning Sunday and Dani Torres Werra hurled a six-hit shutout as the Amherst College softball team captured its first NESCAC Championship in program history with a 1-0 victory over Tufts at the host Jumbos' Spicer Field. 

Amherst improved to 24-7 with the win and earned the conference's automatic berth into the 2022 Div. III NCAA Tournament. The softball selection show is slated for 1 p.m. Monday. This will be the Mammoths' 6th NCAA Tournament appearance and first since 2018.

The Jumbos placed the tying run on second with one out in the bottom of the seventh, but Mammoth third baseman Sadie Pool snared a line drive and fired to second baseman America Rangel to force the runner at second for a game-ending double play that secured the title. 

GAME HIGHLIGHTS:

* The game was a pitcher's duel between Amherst's Torres Werra and Tufts' ace Sophia DiCocco. Each pitcher went the full seven and allowed six hits. Torres Werra walked one and struck out seven over seven innings. DiCocco walked two and fanned eight batters.

* Amherst left 10 runners on base while the Jumbos stranded six. Neither team had any player with more than one hit. 

* Bloxham led off the top of the seventh with a beautiful bunt single to the third-base side of the plate, just beating the throw for a single. Megan Taketa followed with her own bunt out in front of the plate that sacrificed Bloxham to second. The speedy Mammoth senior took third on a wild pitch. She then took off fo the plate on a suicide squeeze attempt. Lovejoy placed her bunt perfectly between the dish and the circle. DiCoccio raced in and gloved a toss home, but Bloxham slid under the tag to snap the scoreless tie.

* Torres Werra induced a pop out fo the first out of the bottom of the seventh before DiCoccio, entering the game as a batter for the first time, ripped a pitch about two feet shy of a home run in right, settling for a double as the ball bounded off the outfield fence. Pinch-hitter Keila McCabe fell behind 0-2 before lining a shot over third baseman Pool. Tied for the tallest player on the squad, Pool extended her arms up instinctually and snared the liner, quickly firing to second where Rangel caught the ball to double off the runner and end the game. 

* Taketa, Bloxham, Pool, Torres Werra, Autumn Lee and Jess Butler had the Amherst hits.