In its first game of the season, Head Coach Sue Everden's squad shut out Nichols 8-0. Warner was dominant, striking out 14 while giving up only two hits. She received solid run support, thanks to first-year catcher Kate Raddock's double and three RBIs.
Trigeiro continued her hot hitting in the second game of the doubleheader, a 6-1 loss to Framingham State College, coming within a home run of hitting for the cycle. Co-captain Emily Melia '03 went 2.1 innings and yielded five hits and five runs. Warner relieved her quite capably, surrendering only five hits and an unearned run in 3.2 innings.
The Jeffs rebounded with a 3-1 victory against Keene State. Warner allowed three hits, her riser baffling the 12 Keene State batters she fanned; she fared equally well at the plate, where she had a hit and drove in a run. Co-captain shortstop Missy Mordy '03 contributed a pair of hits and an RBI, while Raddock rounded out the scoring with an RBI.
The Jeffs, however, would have no such luck against NESCAC East Division rival Bowdoin College (Amherst competes in the NESCAC West). Not only did the Jeffs fall 5-3, but an injury felled Mordy. Having already reached base on two hits and plating a run, Mordy was knocked out of the game due to injury. As a result, the Jeffs had to reshuffle their defense.
The result was not pretty. Warner pitched well, striking out five and giving up only three hits. But her defense failed her to the tune of six errors, which led to four unearned runs. The loss dropped the Jeffs' record to 2-2.
Amherst's defensive woes persisted the next day, as it suffered an 8-5 defeat at the hands of Lasell College. Melia returned to the mound to spell Warner, but was victimized by six errors, which concluded in four unearned runs in the loss. Melia contributed offensively with two hits, as did junior Della Huff and Trigeiro, who contributed two RBIs.
That night, Warner had a no-hitter through five innings against Endicott College, but Endicott stifled Amherst offensively, shutting out the Jeffs 2-0. Warner, for a pitcher who was two innings away from a no-hitter in her fourth career start, was not as disappointed as one might expect. "I didn't even realize until after I had given up the no-hitter that I had had one," she said.
On the heels of her near no-hitter, Warner tossed a complete-game 5-2 loss to Worcester State College. With Mordy still sidelined, the team had to start several players out of position, which undoubtedly was a factor in the five errors the Jeffs committed. Amherst, however, could take solace in Warner's 12 strikeouts and three hits allowed.
Against St. Lawrence, the Jeffs mounted a rousing comeback to win 14-7. Trailing 7-0 after the first inning, the Jeffs scored 14 unanswered runs in the next six innings. Warner pitched a masterful five innings of relief, surrendering just one hit and fanning seven. Trigeiro's torrid pace at the plate was in full effect again, as she singled, tripled and homered, while Raddock tallied a double and three RBIs.
The Jeffs concluded their Florida trip with another come-from-behind victory, this time 8-2 over Fontbonne. Heading into the fifth inning with a 3-0 deficit, the Jeffs rallied for four runs. Trigeiro, who knocked in a run on a single, scored the game-winning run on Melia's two-run double. Warner, meanwhile, threw another complete game.
Summing up the team's Florida experience, Warner had mixed enthusiasm. "We beat some of the tough teams, but lost to some of the ones we should have beaten," she said.