Middlebury College

The second-seeded Middlebury softball team trailed 2-1 after five innings, but the Panthers tied the tilt in the seventh and walked it off in the eighth for a thrilling 3-2 victory over seventh-seeded Bates in the NESCAC Quarterfinal round. With the triumph, the team set a program record for single-season victories with 31. 
 
HIGHLIGHTS

• The Bobcats struck with a run in the second inning. Zariya Anderson doubled to left field, moved to third on a sacrifice bunt and scampered home on an RBI single to center off the bat of Emily Anderson for the 1-0 edge.
• The navy and white answered with a tally of their own in the bottom of the frame. Sarah LaFond roped a base knock to left and later touched the plate on a blistering double from Livy Schultz that plugged the right-center field gap to make it 1-1.
• The maroon and white regained a one-run lead (2-1) in the fourth stanza. Emma Yen drew a one-out walk, scampered ahead on a sac bunt and jogged home on an Emily Kennedy single down the right-field line.
• Base knocks from Jen Westphal and LaFond put runners on first and second to begin the home half, but Bobcat pitcher Brigid Gaffny wriggled out of the jam with a double play and a flyout.
• The score remained that way until the bottom of the seventh. Katelyn Mikros singled to center and Sera Tokumaru was inserted as a pinch runner. She was promptly sacrificed to second and scampered to third on a groundout. After a walk coaxed by McKenna Lont, Kristyn Carroll poked an opposite-field single to plate Tokumaru and knot the contest at 2-2.
• Middlebury pitcher Emily Dowd gave the bats a chance, surrendering just an infield single to Isabel Bettencourt in the top of the eighth.
• The Panthers strung together three straight hits in the bottom of the frame. Westphal started the winning rally with a single to center, while LaFond followed with a base hit to right. Olivia Scholes walked it off with a knock to right center, as Westphal beat the tag of the catcher to send Middlebury to a thrilling 3-2 triumph.

NOTES

• Dowd logged the final six innings in the circle to tally the win. She allowed just one run on four hits and struck out six. The victory was her 12th of the spring, putting the rookie into a third-place tie in the single-season records.
• LaFond matched her career high with three hits, while Olivia Fleming, Westphal and Schultz also had multi-hit games.
• The Panthers posted their 31st win of the spring, surpassing the mark of 30 set during the 2011 campaign.
• Today's contest kick-started Middlebury's 15th appearance in the NESCAC Tournament. 
• The programs played for the 24th time overall and first in NESCAC Tournament action, with the Panthers leveling the series at 12-12.

Middlebury continues its quest for a NESCAC title on Saturday against the winner of Game 4 featuring third-seeded Colby and sixth-seeded Trinity. First pitch of the semifinal contest is slated for 5:00 p.m.