Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2 THE BASICS:
- Scores:
Babson College 4, No. 20 MIT 2
Babson College 8, No. 20 MIT 3
- Records: MIT (8-2, 0-2 NEWMAC); Babson College (11-7, 3-3 NEWMAC)
- Location: Cambridge, Mass. (Briggs Field)
- The Lead: The No. 20 ranked MIT softball team dropped both ends of its first New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) doubleheader to Babson College this afternoon at Briggs Field. Babson took game one by a 4-2 score and then claimed game two by an 8-3 final.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
Game One
- MIT jumped on the board first with single runs in the opening frame and the fourth inning for the 2-0 advantage. In the first, freshman Michelle Wist (Cypress, Texas) brought home junior Jasmin Joseph (Woodland Hills, Calif.) for the Engineers' first run. Joseph led off the inning with a double to left center and was moved to third on a sacrifice bunt by senior Natalie Shifflet (Poway, Calif.).
- The Engineers doubled their lead in the fourth when sophomore Ravenne Nasser (Methuen, Mass.) blasted her and the team's first home run of the season over the fence in the left field as MIT led 2-0 through four. Nasser's hit marked the first collegiate home run for the sophomore.
- Babson answered in the fifth as all four of its runs came in that inning. Senior Megan Merullo lined a two-run double to right center and three batters later sophomore Josephine Mares knocked in two more with a triple to right center. The Beavers began the frame with back-to-back singles from sophomore Ashley Tango and junior Samantha Smith to put the visitors in scoring position right from the start.
- Babson freshman Brooke Stock came on to pitch in the fifth inning and earned her first collegiate save as she tossed two and one-third clean innings. Stock did not allow a hit to the Engineers and she struck out two to close the game with a 4-2 win for the visiting Beavers.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
- Junior Ali Reilly (4-4) earned the win for Babson as she tossed four and two-thirds inning scattering six hits and allowing two runs (both earned), while Nasser (3-1) was handed the loss on five innings, four runs (two earned), five hits, two strikeouts and a walk. Classmate Amber VanHemel (Coconut Creek, Fla.) came on in the sixth for MIT and yielding just two hits and struck out a pair to keep the Engineers in the game.
- MIT's six hits came from six different Engineers and each of the top-three batters drew walks this afternoon. Additionally, Joseph, senior Ali Trueworthy (Rochester, N.H.) and classmate Monica Shifflet (Poway, Calif.) all registered doubles in the first game. Babson's Mares and Smith both notched two hits for the Beavers as they both went 2-for-3 in game one.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
Game Two:
- In game two, neither team wasted time as both squads pushed two runs across the plate in the first inning. However, Babson went on to score two in the second and one in every other inning except for the sixth to secure the 8-3 win and a two-game sweep of the Engineers.
- MIT got its two runs in the bottom of the first on an RBI double to center from Wist and a sacrifice fly via junior Zoe Hinton (Aurora, Colo.). In that frame, Joseph led off with a walk and N. Shifflet singled down the left field line putting Wist and Hinton in RBI situations.
- In MIT's half of the fourth, freshman Sarah Von Ahn (West Linn, Ore.) reached on a throwing error and was run for by classmate Sierra Rosenzweig (Anchorage, Alaska). After freshman Devon Goetz (Rockville, Md.) bunted a single, advancing Rosenzweig to third, she stole second. On the throw down, Rosenzweig scored the Engineers' second run.
- Attempting to rally in the sixth and runners on first and third, MIT tried to catch Babson off guard by running on the play. Von Ahn stole second, but senior Helen Rosenthal (Bethesda, Md.) was tagged out at the plate after the ball was thrown to second. A great relay that went from the catcher to the second baseman and back to the catcher (2-4-2) thwarted MIT's scoring opportunities in the frame. Babson added an insurance run on an RBI single by Merullo in the seventh and Stock finished her complete game effort as the Beavers won game two by an 8-3, final.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
- The top-four hitters in MIT's lineup – Joseph, N. Shifflet, Wist and Hinton – all notched one hit in the second game this afternoon, while Goetz stole her third base of the season and Von Ahn swiped her first bag of her collegiate career. Babson's offense was charged by 3-for-4 performances by Tango and Merullo, while Samantha Smith, Annie Quine and Merullo all notched two RBI's for the Beavers.
- Stock earned the win (7-3) for Babson as she allowed three runs (two earned), seven hits, two walks and struck out three in game two. The freshman was effective in the circle as 52 of her 81 pitches went for strikes. MIT junior Deanna Delgado (Miami, Fla.) was handed the loss (2-1) in relief as she surrendered three runs (two earned) and five hits in two and one-third innings.
- Today marked the first time since the 2014 campaign that Babson has earned a two-game sweep of MIT as the Beavers are 38-18 all-time against the Engineers dating back to 1988.
UP NEXT:
- MIT heads to Worcester State University on Wednesday for a non-conference doubleheader against the Lancers beginning at 4:00 p.m., while Babson welcomes Wellesley College in NEWMAC action on Friday starting at 3:00 p.m.
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