Worcester, Mass. – March 27, 2009 – Senior lefthander Samantha Rhodes pitched a 2-hit shutout in game #1 as the Springfield College softball team defeated WPI, 4-0, at WPI’s Alumni Field this afternoon in a New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference opener for both teams. But it was a Rhodes’ throwing error which proved to be the game’s biggest play as WPI came back to win, 4-3, in eight innings in the second game of the doubleheader.
With the split, Springfield is now 6-8 overall, 1-1 in NEWMAC play. The Engineers are now 5-10 overall, also 1-1 in league play.
In game #1, Springfield scored single runs in the third and fourth, and added another two in the seventh. The Pride parlayed 14 hits and three WPI errors into those four runs. Junior SS Jaimie Moran and senior 3B Shanda Kogut each went 3-for-4 at the plate. That included a double for Moran.
Senior 1B Aimee Cassella knocked in the game’s first run with a single in the third. Kogut knocked in the game’s second run on a base hit to the shortstop area in the fourth. Both Springfield runs in the seventh were unearned. Rhodes picked up the win, her third in five decisions at that point. She did not allow a hit until the leadoff hitter singled in the sixth inning. She struck out 10, while walking only one.
In the second game, Springfield jumped out by scoring all three of its runs in the third inning. Cassella knocked in the first two runs with a double to left-center. Junior C Michelle Wlosek then singled to right-center to plate SC’s third run.
But WPI came back with two in the fourth and one in the fifth to tie it at 3-3. Freshman Megan Fitzgerald went the first 4 2/3 innings for SC. She gave up the first three runs on seven hits, striking out three and walking none. The Pride then had a great opportunity to score in the sixth by loading the bases with one out, but could not get it done. When the game went into extra innings, SC had another chance to take the lead in the top of the eighth with a runner on third and just one out. But the Pride was foiled again.
In the bottom of the eighth, with a WPI runner placed on second base to lead it off, SC dropped a fly ball for an error, the runner advancing to third with nobody out. Clean-up hitter Sara Migdal then lined one right back to Rhodes for the first out. But Rhodes threw it wild to third in an attempt to double up the runner, and the winning run scored.
Springfield will entertain Wheaton in a league doubleheader Saturday at 12 noon at Potter Field.
