AMHERST, Mass. -- First-year
Abby Moravek and sophomore
Dani Torres Werra combined to allow just three runs over 17 innings Sunday as the Amherst College softball team walked away from the Amherst Softball Field with 3-2 and 3-1 wins over Bates College.
The Mammoths have won four straight now, improving to 17-9 overall and, most important, evening their conference record at 5-5. Bates fell to 11-11 overall and 5-7 in NESCAC play. Amherst is home Wednesday for a Pride Day doubleheader with Western New England University beginning at 3:30 p.m.
GAME 2 HIGHLIGHTS:
* Moravek got the start and Bates took an early lead when a wild pitch brought home a run in the first.
* Amherst took the lead with two runs in the bottom of the third.
Megan Taketa ignited the rally with a booming double to right-center field.
Rachel Lovejoy sacrificed her to third with two outs, and Torres Werra was hit by a pitch. That brought up junior
Sadie Pool and she jumped on a 1-1 pitch, driving it to deep straightaway center field where it hit the bottom of the fence for a two-run double and a 2-1 Amherst lead.
* The Mammoths added an insurance run in the bottom of the fourth when
Jess Butler got a hold of a blast that cleared the fence in left for a solo home run -- her career-high fourth -- and gave Amherst a 3-1 lead.
* Moravek was on point all game, especially late. She stranded two runners in the top of the fifth, one more in the sixth, and ended the game with a flourish, fanning the first two batters of the seventh before inducing a fly to Torres Werra in right field to end the game.
* Moravek improved to 6-2 from the circle. She did not walk a batter while allowing five basehits and striking out six over seven complete innings.
GAME 1 HIGHLIGHTS:
* Torres Werra got the start and tossed a season-high 8 1/3 innings before turning the pitching over to Moravek.
* Amherst took a 2-0 lead early, scoring in the first when Taketa singled, stole home, and scored on an error. In the Amherst third, Torres Werra led off with a line shot into the right-center field gap which went for a triple. She scored on Autmn Lee's infield single. Lee got caught in a rundown between first and second, giving Torres Werra time to scamper home on the play.
* Bates tied it up in the sixth on a two-out error.
* The game moved on to the 10th when the international tie-breaker rule was put into effect. (Placing a runner on second to begin the inning). In the top of the frame, Bates sacrificed its runner to third with one out, but Moravek of a perfectly placed grounder to Pool at third for the second out and a pop-up to
Randi Finkelstein at second to end the inning.
* In the bottom of the frame, Moravek bunted runner
America Rangel to third with one out. Taketa hit a grounder to first and Rangel raced home with the winning run ahead of the throw to end the game.
* Torres Werra allowed eight hits and two walks over 8 1/3 innings while walking two and striking out six. Moravek did not allow a hit or a walk over 1 2/3 innings to pick up the win.
* Taketa was 3 for 5, Torres Werra 2 for 2, Lee 2 for 4, and Moravek 1 for 1 in the game.
