CLERMONT, Fla. – The College of Saint Benedict softball team picked up the first losses of its Florida trip Tuesday, dropping a pair of close games to Hamilton and Hope. The Blazers lost 6-4 to Hamilton, and then fell 3-2 to Hope on a walkoff RBI single in the bottom of the seventh inning.
Hamilton took a 3-0 lead in the first inning of CSB's first game of the day thanks to a pair of singles and a two-run double. CSB made it 3-1 when
Claire Boatman stole home in the second inning, and the Blazers got within one in the fourth on an RBI single by
Emilie Antony.
CSB took a 4-3 lead in the fifth on an RBI double by
Kiela DeVlaeminck and an RBI groundout from Boatman, but three hits – including a pair of doubles – and two CSB errors helped Hamilton score three runs in the sixth to make it 6-4. The Blazers loaded the bases in the sixth, but hit into a double play to end the scoring threat, and only one batter reached base in the seventh.
Antony went 2-for-2 to lead CSB, which had seven total hits.
Claire Haddick threw the first 4.1 innings and gave up three runs on six hits.
Cassie Meyer threw the final 2.2 innings and took the loss after giving up three runs on four hits. She struck out three batters.
In CSB's second game of the day, Hope struck first in the third when a batter got a double, and the next batter tripled and came home to score on a Blazer error to put the Dutch up 2-0. The Blazers tied the game in the fourth on an error and an RBI double by Antony, and the score stayed tied until the bottom of the seventh. CSB left the bases loaded in the fifth and got several runners on in the sixth, but failed to score.
In the bottom of the seventh, the first three batters bunted for Hope. The first two reached with a hit, and one reached on a CSB error. The fourth batter hit to second but
Claire Boatman was able to make the play at home to get the out, but Hope won the game on an RBI single between first and second.
Megan Toninato went 4-for-4 to lead CSB, which had 10 hits. Antony went 2-for-3 and she and
Courtney Wissbaum each had an RBI. DeVlaeminck threw all 6.1 innings and took the loss after giving up three runs on seven hits with three strikeouts.
CSB is off Wednesday, and returns to action Thursday, March 24, when it takes on Buffalo State and Millikin University.