MILTON, Mass. – The Curry College softball team had to come back in game one after surrendering a 12-0 lead, but the win would stand as the only decision of the day as darkness wiped out the progress made in game two. With the single win, the Colonels improve to 9-10 while the loss sinks the Nighthawks to 3-14.
Game One: Curry 14, Newbury 13
Curry made it look as though the first game of the afternoon would be a quick one, scoring 12 runs in the first two innings while Taylor Newcomb (Millville, Mass.) shut down Newbury on the mound. After both teams got through a scoreless third, however, the tides began to change. With one out and a runner on second base in the top of the fourth, Elizabeth Duanys (Worcester, Mass.) gave Newbury a brief boost by launching her first home run of the year over the right field wall. Newcomb managed to escape a bases-loaded jam to keep the score 12-2, but the Nighthawks' offense wasn't finished yet. As Curry headed into the top of the fifth needing three outs to end the game with the run-ahead rule, the visitors pushed three runs across the plate on Duanys' second homer in as many innings to cut the deficit to seven. After the Colonels failed to close out the game in the bottom half of the fifth, the Nighthawks kept the bats going in the top of the sixth, as five hits and a pair of walks brought eight runs across the plate, as Newbury took their first lead of the game at 13-12. The visitors failed to turn in a shutdown inning in the bottom half of the frame, however, as Curry retook the lead with two runs of their own to make it 14-13. Coming off 13 runs in their past three offensive innings, the Nighthawks needed just one run to keep the game alive. With a runner on first and two outs, Averi Johnson (Oregon City, Ore.) drove a fly ball into left, which fell thanks to an error. As the ball trickled to the wall, the runner who started on first had thoughts of tying the game, but center fielder Talia Forte (North Scituate, R.I.) relayed the ball to shortstop Kiana Lloyd (Worcester, Mass.) who threw out the potential tying run at home, as Michaela Colleran (East Bridgewater, Mass.) had plenty of time to apply the game-winning tag.
Jocelyn Dimond (Weare, N.H.) made her presence felt at the plate and on the base paths, going 3-for-3 with three RBI and three runs scored. The sophomore third basemen also reached base on a walk. Colleran drove in three runs, while Liana Duarte (Taunton, Mass., 2-for-2) and Jordan Perzan (Burlington, Conn., 2-for-4) collected multi-hit days for the Colonels. Ambur Leczel (Glendora, Calif.) went 3-for-4 out of the leadoff spot in the losing effort while Arianna Gooden (Bakersfield, Calif.) and Caroline Mahoney (Easton, Mass.) turned in matching 3-for-5 games. Kiana Hinson (La Habra, Calif.) falls to 2-7 on the year after giving up 14 runs (three earned) over six innings. Carrigan Costello (Wolcott, Conn., 4-5) closed out the victory and earns the win, giving up seven runs, but none earned, with a pair of strikeouts in two innings of work.
Game Two: NO CONTEST
After the high-scoring battle in game one, first pitch of the second match-up was pushed roughly to 5:30 p.m. With the field quickly losing daylight, the teams battled through nearly four full innings, which saw 19 runs cross the plate. The Colonels came back from an early 8-1 deficit to take the lead at 10-9, highlighted by a grand slam by Perzan. However, despite the close match-up, the game was called due to darkness and deemed a no contest, much to the chagrin of the hosts.
The game may be replayed later in the season, in which case, the game will resume with the Colonels leading 10-9 in the bottom of the fourth with two baserunners and one out.
The Colonels will resume action with a different rescheduled bout, heading to Fitchburg State for a pair of games tomorrow, starting at 3:30 p.m. The Nighthawks will enjoy an off day tomorrow but get back to work on Thursday, April 4 as they host Husson University. First pitch of the double-header is scheduled for 3:30 p.m.
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