FRANKLIN, Mass. – The bats were alive Wednesday evening as the Curry College softball team took both games of a road double header against the Dean College Bull Dogs. Neither game went a full seven innings but still took a combined four and a half hours to complete. With the wins, the Colonels improve to 7-5 on the season. The Bull Dogs continue their search for win number one on the year as they slide to 0-10.
Game One: Curry 21, Dean 2 (Final/5 Innings)
Curry got off to a hot start, taking advantage of the large field as Liana Duarte (Taunton, Mass.) singled and came around to score on an error in the outfield, which also brought in Jocelyn Dimond (Weare, N.H.). A batter latter, Michaela Colleran (East Bridgewater, Mass.) covered all 240 feet of the base paths with an inside-the-park home run. In the bottom half of the inning, Madisyn Butler (Richfield Springs, N.Y.) hit a homer of her own to get Dean on the board at 3-1, but the Colonels got the run back and then some, scoring five runs on seven hits in the top of the second to extend an 8-1 advantage. After Carrigan Costello (Wolcott, Conn.) turned in a hitless inning to shut down the Bull Dogs, Curry tacked on four more runs in the third to break the game open. The rally was highlighted by another homer, this time by Jordan Perzan (Burlington, Conn.), which drove in a pair and gave the visitors a 12-1 lead. The Bull Dogs scored their second run of the day on a two out, Shelby Smith (Southwick, Mass.) double, but Curry continued to pour it on with four runs in the fourth and four more in the fifth. With a pair of strikeouts and a fly out to left, Costello retired Dean 1-2-3 in the bottom of the fifth and closed out the game thanks to the run ahead rule with the Colonels ahead 21-2.
Duarte had a career game, going 5-for-5 at the plate with four RBI and five runs scored. Taylor Newcomb (Millville, Mass., 4-for-4) and Perzan (3-for-5) were also forces to be dealt with on offense, driving in three and four runs, respectively. Kiana Lloyd (Worcester, Mass.) and Dimond also recorded three hits a piece while Dimond crossed the plate all three times she reached base. Costello is credited with the much-deserved win, giving up just two runs over five innings of work while striking out four. The victory evens her season record at 3-3. Butler and Smith turned in the only multi-hit games for the Bull Dogs with two hits apiece, while Karissa Menzinger (Centereach, N.Y.) gets the loss after throwing all five innings.
Game Two: Curry 14, Dean 11 (Final/6 Innings, on account of Darkness)
As the evening rolled on, it was Dean who jumped out first in game two, plating a pair of runs in the bottom of the first. The lead wouldn't last long though, as Curry scored one in the second and three in the third to grab a 4-2 lead. Faced with another deficit heading into the bottom of the third, Dean found the offense they were missing in game one. The Colonels committed four errors in the innings and surrendered six hits, allowing eight runs to cross the dish in a rally which was capped by a three-run, bases-clearing double off the bat of Butler. Suddenly down 10-4, the Colonels took their turn with the bats and didn't waste any time, as six straight batters reached base to lead off the inning, scoring five runs in the process. After a grounder put an out on the board, Alexis Buckner (Foxborough, Mass.) homered to left center, driving in two runs and retaking the lead at 11-10. The Colonels threatened again in the top of fifth, putting runners on second and third with no outs, but Colleran got thrown out at home trying to score on a sac fly before a grounder to first got the Bull Dogs out of a jam. Dean knotted the game thanks to an error on the infield in the bottom half of the frame, which sent the game to the sixth with an 11-11 score. Curry remained masterfully patient as they got back on offense, drawing three straight walks and capitalizing on the free bases as three runs scored. Allison May (West Bridgewater, Mass.) came across on a wild pitch, Duarte scored on a sac fly, and Julia Price made the score 14-11 on a 6-3 ground out. After Newcomb recorded a 1-2-3 shut down inning for the Colonels to close out the sixth, the teams attempted to get back on the field for the final inning as the light waned. However, the decision was made to call the contest early due to the lack of light Curry heads home with a sweep.
Colleran led the Colonels with three hits in game two while Molly Horn (Buzzards Bay, Mass., 2-for-3) and Newcomb (2-for-5) collected multi-hit games of their own. Newcomb earns the win, giving up six earned over six innings while striking out eight. Buckner and Colleran added to the cause with three RBI each as they both swatted a four-bagger in the contest. Danielle Dumont (Nashua, N.H.) drove in three runs while Butler came in to score three times, though no Bull Dog registered more than a single hit in the second tilt. Ali Nelson (Candia, N.H.) is saddled with the loss after her six innings of work.
Dean will play next on Sunday, March 24, as they travel to face Rivier College at the Presentation of Mary Academy in Hudson, N.Y. First pitch of the double header is set for 1:00 p.m. Through 12 match ups, the Colonels are yet to play a home game and will stay on the road for games 13 and 14, heading to Fitchburg State for a pair of games, starting at 12:00 p.m. on Saturday, March 23.
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