WESTON, Mass. – Gordon College mashed out 37 hits and scored 31 runs over two games as the Fighting Scots swept a non-conference softball doubleheader from Regis College on Thursday afternoon in Weston, Mass. Gordon improves to 8-23 overall with the sweep, while Regis drops to 7-23.
In game one, Gordon scored eight runs over the first four innings of action to take an 8-0 lead. Rachel Ryder (Telford, Pa.) scored the game's first run on a double steal, before Emily Borden (Groton, Conn.) drove in Kara Pepper (Wyckoff, N.J.) with an RBI single up the middle that made it 2-0 in the first inning. The Fighting Scots added two more in the top of the second as Kerry McPartlan (Yonkers, N.Y.) led off the inning with a homer to left field and Liz Cheesman (Winslow, Maine) added an RBI double that scored Ryder to make it a 4-0 game.
Gordon added three in the third as Gabriel Roberts (Chocorua, N.H.) led off the inning with a triple down the line in right, later scoring on a single by Ryder, which also plated McPartlan. Kara Pepper hit an RBI single that scored Ryder and staked the Scots to a 7-0 lead. Kendall Bukuras (North Falmouth, Mass.) doubled to right-centerfield in the fourth inning, scoring Cheesman, as the Scots took a commanding 8-0 lead.
With their backs against the wall, Regis scored six runs in the bottom of the fourth to make it an 8-6 game. The Pride loaded the bases on a lead-off double by Jill Bruning (Medford, Mass.) and a pair of walks to Katie Blackburn (Milford, Mass.) and Samantha Bliss (Framingham, Mass.). Cassie Langone (Chichester, N.H.) drove in Regis' first run of the day, scoring Bruning while keeping the bases loaded. All the runners moved up a base, with Blackburn scoring on a passed ball for the Pride's second run.
Sarah Porteus (South Wellfleet, Mass.) drove in Langone and Bliss with a two-run single to right-center that made it an 8-4 game. After a walk to Shannon Bradish (Lawrence, Mass.) and a wild pitch that put both Porteus and Bradish in scoring position, Kelsey Heath (Lowell, Mass.) delivered with an RBI single to center that scored Porteus. Kim Daniels (Jaffrey, N.H.) drove in Bradish with a sacrifice fly that made it an 8-6 ball game.
Regis kept the Fighting Scots off the board in the top of the fifth, but came away empty handed in their half of the inning after back-to-back singles by Langone and Porteus. The Pride could not keep the Gordon bats quiet in the top of the sixth, however, as Borden had an RBI double followed by a run scoring on a bad throw that made it 10-6. Gordon scored another run on a perfectly executed suicide-squeeze by Hannah Towers (Valley Cottage, N.Y.) and one more on an RBI single by McPartlan.
The Pride would never have another base runner as Skylar Bareford (Stonington, Conn.) kept the Pride out of the base paths over the final two innings, while Gordon added three more runs in the top of the seventh, to take a 15-6 victory.
Regis's Cassie Langone and Sarah Porteus both were a perfect 2-for-2 at the plate in the first game and combined to drive in three runs and score two of their own. Emily Pickett and Sarah Porteus both struggled at the plate, combining to allow 19 hits and 15 runs, with only eight earned, over seven innings.
Eight of the nine players in the lineup reached base for Gordon, led by Liz Cheesman's 4-for-5 day with three runs scored. Rachel Ryder went 3-for-5 with three runs scored as well, while Emily Borden was 3-for-4 with three RBI's and a run scored. Skylar Bareford picked up the win, tossing six innings and allowing five runs (four earned) on five hits with eight strikeouts.
Game two was all Gordon as they grabbed a 6-0 lead in the top of the first and never looked back. They added 10 more runs in their half of the third as Gordon's Hannah Lawrence (Somerset, Mass.) tossed five innings and allowed only two hits with a pair of strikeouts in earning her second win of the year.
Regis's Kim Daniels and Alex Manavas (Montville, Conn.) registered the lone Pride hits in the game. Pickett and Porteus struggled from the mound again, combining for only three innings and allowing 16 runs (10 earned) on 17 hits. Samantha Bliss pitched the final two innings, allowing only one hit and striking out a pair.
Gordon's lineup had another big game as this time all nine batters in the lineup reached base. Kara Pepper went 4-for-4 with an RBI and two runs scored, while Kerry McPartlan went 3-for-3 with five RBI, including her second homerun of the day. Rachel Otto (Plymouth, N.H.) drove in three runs, and Emily Borden added two more RBI's in the game.
The Pride look to bounce back on Saturday afternoon when they return to New England Collegiate Conference action with a doubleheader against Mitchell College starting at 12:00 p.m. Gordon looks to extend its four-game winning-streak when the Fighting Scots take on Salve Regina University on Saturday afternoon in a Commonwealth Coast Conference doubleheader starting at 12:00 p.m.