Tufts in Search of Third-Straight Softball Title

Bates Earns Playoff Spot for First Time in Tournament History

HADLEY, Mass. – With a perfect 12-0 conference mark, two-time defending NESCAC champion Tufts University will host the 2009 NESCAC Softball Championship at Spicer Field in Medford, Mass. Joining the Jumbos in pursuit of the 2009 title will be Wesleyan, the top seed from the West Division, along with Williams and Bates, as the Bobcats are making their first-ever postseason appearance. The three-day, double-elimination tournament begins on Friday, May 1 with the Ephs facing the host Jumbos at 2:30 p.m., followed shortly afterwards with the Bobcats taking on the Cardinals at 5:00 p.m. The 2009 NESCAC Softball Championship continues throughout the weekend and will conclude on Sunday, May 3 with the championship game beginning at 10:00 a.m. Fans unable to attend this weekend’s action will be able to follow all three games live via the Internet on JumboCast.com.

Winners of five conference titles, Tufts (35-1, 12-0 NESCAC East) has been on a roll this spring, putting together a 30-win season for the third year in a row with a program-best 35 victories. The Jumbos locked up the number-one seed in the East well before the end of the league slate, as a three-game sweep of Colby on April 10-11 guaranteed Tufts the right to host this year. Tufts came within one game of a perfect regular season on Tuesday at Brandeis, earning a 3-0 win in the first game before suffering a 2-1 loss to the Judges in the nightcap. It may come as little surprise that the Jumbos lead the league in most major statistical categories, as they are first in batting average (.368) and on-base percentage (.426) while boasting a NESCAC-low ERA of 1.63 and holding opponents to a .230 average at the plate. Senior OF Maya Ripecky (Chicago, Ill.) currently ranks second among all conference players with a .509 batting average and a .553 on-base percentage, hitting a team-high 13 doubles while driving in 32 runs. In the circle, the tandem of Senior Lauren Gelmetti (Westfield, N.J.) and sophomore Izzie Santone (Madison, Conn.) have both enjoyed a stellar season. Gelmetti is 15-0 with a conference-low 1.10 ERA, recording 67 strikeouts over 89.0 IP and holding opposing batters to a .193 average. Santone has put together a 16-1 record with a 1.29 ERA over 103.0 IP. Against this year’s tournament field, the Jumbos have only faced fellow East Division foe Bates, earning a 3-0 series win over the Bobcats on March 27-28.

Wesleyan (15-18, 9-3 NESCAC West) secured the top seed out of the West Division for the second consecutive year thanks to a 3-0 series victory at Hamilton this past weekend. After making the conference championship field for the first time in 2007, the Cardinals will appear in the tournament for the third year in a row with the hopes of reaching Sunday’s final for the second-straight time. Last May, Wesleyan lost its first tournament game before rallying on Saturday by winning three contests and forcing a decisive seventh game against Tufts, falling to the Jumbos 10-3. After dropping their first two NESCAC outings this season, Wesleyan went 9-1 the rest of the way to claim the top seed, including a 2-1 series win against Williams on April 10 and 12. The Cardinals head into the tournament weekend with a win over Trinity on Monday, 4-1, followed by a 9-1 loss at Coast Guard on Tuesday. Powering Wesleyan at the plate has been sophomore Talia Bernstein (Miami, Fla.) and junior Meaghan Dendy (Swansea, Mass.), both of whom were All-NESCAC First Team selections a year ago. Bernstein owns a team-best .455 average and a .505 on-base percentage, collecting 46 hits, five doubles, three home runs, and 24 RBI. Dendy is currently second behind Bernstein, hitting .398 with a .426 on-base percentage and a .522 slugging mark. Dendy has also handled the majority of the Cardinals’ pitching duties, posting a 10-7 record with a 3.57 ERA over 115.2 IP and recording 90 strikeouts.

It came down to the final games of the regular season for Williams (15-15, 8-4 NESCAC West) in order for it to reach this year’s championship. The Ephs, winners of three-straight NESCAC titles from 2004 through 2006, needed to take both outings this past Saturday afternoon against Amherst in order to make the tournament and did just that, downing the Jeffs 5-3 and 8-4. The pair of victories guaranteed the Ephs their ninth consecutive appearance, as only Tufts and Williams have participated in every NESCAC Softball Championship ever held. Williams heads into the weekend at Tufts having won seven of its last 10 outings, and of this year’s tournament field the Ephs have only faced the Cardinals, going 1-2. Statistically, Williams is third among conference teams in batting with a collective .322 average while the pitching staff ranks seventh with a 3.89 ERA and a .289 opponents average. Senior shortstop Joey Lye (Toronto, Ontario) has been the Ephs’ spark plug once again this season, as she currently leads all conference players with a .564 average and a .607 on-base percentage. A two-time All-Conference First Team honoree, Lye set two program records during the weekend series against Amherst with her 20th steal of the spring for a new single-season mark along with the career runs scored record.

Making its first-ever trip to the NESCAC Softball Championship will be Bates (12-14, 6-6 NESCAC East). The Bobcats had a critical series with Trinity during the final weekend of the season, needing just one win to guarantee a spot in this year’s championship. After falling to the Bantams on Friday afternoon 9-4, Bates was able to finally get past Trinity in the 11th inning of Saturday’s first game, 9-8. Since dropping a three-game series at Tufts March 27-28, the Bobcats have gone 10-5, most recently earning a doubleheader sweep at Southern Maine on Monday, 7-6 and 9-2, and splitting a set with Husson, 5-9 and 8-4. The Bobcats are hitting at a .296 rate this season while posting a 5.60 ERA against opponents through 22 games. At the top of the Bates stat sheet is senior Stacia Saniuk (Sharon, Mass.). The 2006 NESCAC Rookie of the Year and an All-Conference First Team member last spring, Saniuk leads her squad from the batter’s box with a .419 average, a .517 on-base percentage and a .662 slugging mark. Saniuk holds the program record for career home runs with 20 over her four seasons. Rookie Leah Maciejewski (Tewksbury, Mass.) has enjoyed a stellar first season at Bates, posting a .378 batting average in addition to a .425 on-base percentage with a team-best eight doubles. Maciejewski hit the game-winning double on Saturday in the bottom of the 11th inning to put her squad over Trinity 9-8 and into the NESCAC playoffs.

The top two teams from the East and West divisions earn the right to participate in the NESCAC Softball Championship. The host site rotates between divisions on a yearly basis, with the top team in the East Division earning the right to host the event this season. After Friday’s pair of contests, Saturday’s morning game will be the first elimination game of the tournament between the two first day losers, followed by a contest between the first day winners. The late afternoon contest on Saturday will be an elimination game between the two teams who split their first two tournament games. Sunday’s championship will feature the survivor of the final game on Saturday and the remaining undefeated team in the tournament. A second game will immediately follow if the undefeated team falls in Sunday’s championship game.

2009 NESCAC SOFTBALL CHAMPIONSHIP
Day 1 - Friday, May 1 at Tufts
Game 1 - W2 Williams at E1 Tufts - 2:30 p.m.
Game 2 - E2 Bates vs. W1 Wesleyan - 5:00 p.m.

Day 2 - Saturday, May 2 at Tufts
Game 3 - Loser of GM 1 vs. Loser of GM 2 - 10:00 a.m.
Game 4 - Winner of GM 1 vs. Winner of GM 2 - 12:30 p.m.
Game 5 - Winner of GM 3 vs. Loser of GM 4 - 3:00 p.m.

Day 3 - Sunday, May 3 at Tufts
Game 6 - Winner of GM 4 vs. Winner of GM 5 - 10:00 a.m.
Game 7 - If Necessary - Immediately Following