From there they headed to Middlebury College for a NESCAC three-game, two-day combo. They came out of that matchup with two losses and only one win. The Jeffs then took hold of their league play, picking up two key victories over Bates, which brought them to an important 8-5 record in the NESCAC and knotted their season record up at 14-14.
On Wednesday, Amherst and Smith battled in a double header for the infamous "Battle of the Bridge," which turned out to be a true Pioneer Valley Classic. The Pioneers excelled in the first game, holding it to only five innings, but could not complete the sweep, falling on some late-game heroics by the Jeffs. It turned out to be a rough day for first-year pitcher Alex Chang-Graham, who went out to fight in the first game of the pair. She ended her day giving up nine runs on 11 hits, starting what turned out to be a 10-0 win for the Pioneers in a shortened five innings.
The second match began with the Jeffs refusing to go down without a fight. They picked up their first point in the third, courtesy of Ralina Shaw '09 on an RBI single. Then the game seemed to be going in a direction similar to that of earlier in the day as the Jeffs found themselves down 4-1 going into the sixth inning. But the fat lady was cut short as the Jeffs put up four big runs in the sixth, holding on in the final frame to pick up a much desired split on the day.
Amherst went away on Friday; the Jeffs traveled down to Middlebury, Vt., to face Middlebury for the first of three NESCAC West games lined up for the weekend. The Jeffs had a promising start, picking up one run in each of their first two offensive outings. Senior shortstop Annalise Rodli led off with a single. Subsequently she was bunted over to second before being knocked home by catcher Elizabeth Neckes '08. In the second inning, left fielder Julia Cummings '09 used a similar single bunt to move up to second base where designated hitter Emily Bularzik '09 pushed her home. Middlebury got a run back in the bottom of the second on a pair of doubles. The Panthers then took control of the game in the fifth, putting up two runs with their backs against the wall, stuck at two outs. Cummings came up with two hits on the day, though the Jeffs fell to 11-13 on the year with the loss.
Saturday, the Jeffs went into their second grindhouse double feature of the weekend, looking at a 5-4 league record. The first game started off similarly to the one the day before, with Rodli scoring on a Neckes RBI in the first. No more runs were recorded in the game until the sixth inning, where Kelly King '08 ran to home plate as a pinch runner, scoring off first-year infielder Emily Neil's pop out. This gave the Jeffs the game winning 2-0 lead. Chang-Graham and Maddie Tamagni '09 combined on the mound to etch out a win, only allowing four hits in the shutout. The Jeffs headed into the Death Proof portion of the day with confidence, though they fell on the only run of the game, scored in the fourth on a wild pitch by junior Sam Miller. These three games brought the Jeffs to 12-14 on the season.
Amherst entered Monday's pair of games against Bates needing wins, not only in the NESCAC but overall. The Bobcats saw the Jeffs go up 3-0 in the first inning of game one, in part because of Neckes, who knocked two runs in on a triple. Chang-Graham and Tamagni started and saved, respectively, picking up the win for the Jeffs in the first game. In the second, Amherst picked up three runs on three Bates errors.
The Bobcats did get a pair of runs back, but key pitching by Miller got the Jeffs out of the inning with the lead as she struck out three batters in a row with the bases loaded. The Jeffs then took charge of the day in gladiator fashion scoring five runs in the third and three more in the fourth. Miller ended the day early, pitching through the fifth as the game was called due to the mercy rule. Rodli went three-for-four in the nightcap with a run and two RBIs. Neckes picked up an RBI of her own on two for three hitting. Miller recorded another win 11-2, bringing the Jeffs up to 14-14 on the season. The Jeffs do not see the field again until Friday, when they will start their regular season-ending three game series against archrival Williams College. "The whole team is really pumped for our three-game weekend," said Chang-Graham.
NESCAC Notes
Tufts still has a solid lead in the NESCAC East with an 8-1 record. Williams and Wesleyan battle for the top spot in the West as both teams currently have a 7-2 record. Amherst is fourth in the West, just one game behind Middlebury College who is 5-4 against NESCAC teams.