WORCESTER, Mass. - The MIT softball team saw a late rally fall short in game one but rebounded to come from behind and earn a doubleheader split over WPI in the team's first NEWMAC action of the season.
THE BASICS:
- Scores:
- Game 1: WPI 11, MIT 9
- Game 2: MIT 6, WPI 5 (8 Innings)
- Records: MIT (9-3 Overall, 1-1 NEWMAC), WPI (9-5 Overall, 1-1 NEWMAC)
HOW IT HAPPENED – GAME ONE:
- Sophomore Arianna Kumar (San Diego, Calif.) laced a two-RBI double down the rightfield line in the first to give MIT a 2-0 lead. The hosts quickly responded with three runs in the bottom of the inning to take a one-run lead.
- Junior Olivia Scarpaci (Staten Island, N.Y.) put MIT back in front with a two-run shot down the leftfield line in the second, but yet again WPI scored three times in the bottom of the inning to take a 6-4 lead and added five in the bottom of the fourth to take an 11-4 lead.
- MIT began to rally in the top of the sixth, plating five runs in the inning. First year Delaney Benevides (Plainville, Mass.) singled home the fifth run of the day for MIT and classmate Layla Thiessen (Carlsblad, Calif.) followed with a two-run single to center to make it an 11-7 game. Senior Mikayla Cable (Valrico, Fla.) followed with an RBI single up the middle to bring MIT to within 11-8. Kumar then knocked in the ninth run of the day, but WPI escaped without allowing any more runs to cross the plate.
- MIT put two runners on with two outs in its last at-bats in the seventh, but were unable to get any more runs across.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
- Thiessen led the way for MIT with three hits while Kumar had a team-high three RBI.
- Cable, Kumar, Scarpaci, and Benevides all finished with two hits each in the game.
HOW IT HAPPENED – GAME TWO:
- MIT once again grabbed an early 2-0 lead on RBI hits from Kumar and senior Kennedy Adkison (San Jose, Calif.) who laid down a squeeze bunt to plate Cable from third. WPI responded with two runs in the bottom of the frame to tie the score.
- Cable singled home Thiessen to put MIT back in front in the second, and first year Maggie Feng (Brookfield, Wis.) crossed home for the fourth run of the game for MIT in the fourth.
- A homer from Destiny Lum (Kahalu'u, HI) in the fifth followed by a two-run triple by Virginia McKinney (Larchmont, NY) put WPI back in front by one in the sixth.
- After Cable reached on a fielder's choice in the seventh, Kumar doubled her home to tie the game. MIT looked to score the go-ahead run on a double by senior Mackenzie Bivin (San Diego, Calif.) but WPI threw the runner out at home to keep the game tied.
- WPI put two runners on with one out in the bottom of the inning, but junior Caroline Langmeyer (Upper Arlington, Ohio) got the final two outs to send the game to extras.
- Junior Nicole Johnston (St. Charles, Ill.) singled to left with two-outs to plate Scarpaci and give MIT the lead. WPI got a runner on third with one out in the bottom of the inning, but Langmeyer got a strikeout and groundout to end the game.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
- Cable, Benevides, and Kumar all recorded multi-hit games. Cable has gotten a hit in every game so far this season.
- Langmeyer went the full nine to move to 3-1. She gave up three earned runs on nine hits with 10 Ks.
UP NEXT:
- MIT remains on the road for a doubleheader against Endicott on Wednesday, April 2 with first pitch scheduled for 3:00 PM. WPI heads to Emerson on Thursday, April 3 with first pitch scheduled for 3:00 PM.
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