The Middlebury softball team cruised to a sweep of Wesleyan in the final contests of the regular season. The hosts secured a 9-1 win in six innings during the first contest before logging the 30th triumph of the campaign in the finale by a 9-4 score.
GAME ONE HIGHLIGHTS
- Molly Lennon led off the opening frame with a double to left-center field before a base on balls and a hit-by-pitch put a Cardinal on each base. Kelly Baker drove a sacrifice fly to left field that plated Lennon for a 1-0 edge.
- The hosts knotted the affair at 1-1 in the bottom of the second. Olivia Scholes drew a free pass to begin the stanza and advanced to second on a groundout. Consecutive singles from Uma Corcoran and Reagan Adiletta allowed Scholes to dart home.
- After Jen Westphal and Sarah LaFond were plunked in the third, Scholes launched a no-doubt home run to left that gave the Panthers their first lead of the opener. Later in the frame, Corcoran reached on a base hit through the left side and crossed home plate on a base knock from McKenna Lont, making the score 5-1.
- After Scholes reached on a fielder's choice in the fourth, Livy Schultz and Katelyn Mikros went back-to-back with singles to extend the lead to five. Corcoran powered a fly ball to left that brought Schultz home for a 7-1 advantage.
- Middlebury continued to swell the margin to 8-1 in the fifth. Lont commenced the frame with a base hit before nabbing second on a passed ball and third via a groundout. LaFond doubled her in with a drive to right field.
- Kristyn Carroll walked the contest off in the sixth, rolling a ball to shortstop that bought just enough time for pinch runner Sera Tokumaru to sprint the final 60 feet and trigger the run-rule ending (9-1).
GAME TWO HIGHLIGHTS
- Wesleyan nudged its initial run across in the top of the first. Lennon began the stanza with a walk before a three-base miscue allowed her to round the bases. Rebecca Cassel-Siskind scored on a groundout later in the inning to grant the Cardinals a 2-0 start.
- Carroll traversed the bases in the bottom half, beginning with a one-out single up the middle. She stole second base before advancing to third on a fielder's choice and jogging home on a groundout, tightening the tilt to 2-1.
- The Panthers grabbed the lead in the home half of the second. A Schultz single and Mikros two-bagger to right center put a pair in scoring position for Adiletta, who legged out an infield single to bring Schultz home. With two away in the inning, Westphal dropped a base knock into left field that extended the margin to 4-2.
- The navy and white grew the advantage to 6-2 in the fourth stanza. Lont reached on a fielder's choice and scored when Carroll uncorked a two-bagger to left center. Westphal followed with a base hit and LaFond logged a sacrifice fly to center that plated Carroll.
- Wesleyan trimmed the margin to three in the top of the fifth. Cassel-Siskind punched a roller up the middle and swiped second before Palmer scored her with a single.
- Middlebury cashed in on a trio of errors in the sixth, pushing three more runs across to lead 9-3. LaFond and Schultz each drove in a run with base hits in the frame.
- Lennon logged the fourth Cardinal tally in the seventh on a wild pitch, but Panther pitcher Emily Dowd coaxed a flyout and groundout to finalize the 9-4 result and sweep.
NOTES
- Westphal's single in the fourth inning of game two marked her 100th in a Middlebury uniform.
- Scholes enjoyed a 2-for-3 opener with three runs scored and a trio driven in.
- Dowd was lights out in the circle in the second contest, fanning nine batters across the final six frames to improve to 11-1.
- With its 30th win in the nightcap, the team matched the 2011 NESCAC Championship squad for the program record in single-season wins.
- The sides met for the 67th and 68th times, with the Panthers leading the all-time series 43-25. Middlebury has claimed 10 of the prior 12 matchups.
The Panthers set their sights on the upcoming NESCAC Championship, hosted by Bowdoin next weekend. The conference office will announce the seedings and matchups in the coming days.
