BEVERLY, Mass. – The Endicott softball team faced crosstown rival Gordon on Wednesday afternoon for a doubleheader. The Fighting Scots took game one 2-0 led by senior pitcher Skylar Bareford (Stonington, Conn.) while the Gulls fought back and claimed game two as four different members tallied RBIs in the 4-3 victory. Endicott improves to 18-7-1 (10-2 CCC) while Gordon earned their first victory over Endicott since 2001 improving to 8-18 (5-11 CCC).
Game One: Endicott 0, Gordon 2
Game one was a pitching duel between senior Nell O'Connor (Harwich, Mass.) and Bareford. Both pitchers recorded a complete game as O'Connor going six strong innings with five strikeouts on 24 batters faced while delivering 52 strikes on 76 total pitches for the Gulls. Bareford was also a force in the circle as the senior hurled seven innings and allowed just three hits.
The Fighting Scots got on the board early in the bottom of the first as Pepper laid dow na sacrificed but to advance junior Rachel Ryder (Telford, Pa.) to third who then advanced home with some heads-up base running. Scots senior Kendall Bukuras (North Falmouth, Mass.) scored the only other run of the game in the same inning on a successful first-and-third double steal bid.
O'Connor (8-2) fought back to keep the score at a minimum as the senior pitched four 1-2-3 innings after the two runs. The Blue and Green, however, struggled to take advantage of the five base runners that reached via three hits and two walks, stranding runners in scoring position in the second, fourth, and sixth innings.
Game Two: Endicott 4, Gordon 3
In game two, Endicott's bats came alive as the recorded nine hits and four runs in the victory. Sophomore pitcher Courtney Blake (East Islip, N.Y.) lasted seven innings for the Gulls while striking out two on 30 batters faced. The sophomore threw an impressive 61 strikes on 86 total pitches. Her counterpart Bareford, pitched her second complete game of the day for the Fighting Scots but allowed three runs early in the game and a costly solo homerun in the seventh.
Endicott got on the board early as sophomore Emily Hoffman (Malden, Mass.) drop a suicide squeeze to plate senior Alex Moise (North Reading, Mass.) to take the 1-0 lead. The Gulls scoring continued in the bottom of the second as Moise tripled to right field with freshman Julia McNeill (Hauppauge, N.Y.) on base to take the 2-0 lead.
The second inning scoring continued as sophomore Jaime Corda (Higganum, Conn.) stepped up to the plate and singled up the middle as Moise raced around third to score, making it a 3-0 lead for Endicott.
After a 1-2-3 inning by Blake in the bottom of the third the Fighting Scots worked hard defensively in the top of the fourth as Bareford only allowed one hit and zero runs.
In the bottom of the fourth, Gordon got on the scoreboard with two runs to trim Endicott's lea down to 3-2. The first came from a double to left field from freshman Stephanie Zaloom (Albany, N.Y.) that brought sophomore Marissa Meenan (Wayne, Pa.) around the bases. The second came from Zaloom as she took off for home on a fielder's choice.
In the bottom of the fifth the Gulls defense and Blake made some impressive plays recording three outs on just two pitches as Bukuras popped up on a bunt attempt to Hoffman behind the plate who then quickly threw to first to double-up the runner for the double play. On the next pitch Bareford grounded out to first to wrap up the inning.
In the top of the seventh freshman Rachel Couto (Chelmsford, Mass.) homered to left to tack on an insurance run which marked her third homerun on the season. The Fighting Scots worked to get back in the game as they scored one run in the bottom of the seventh but it was not enough as Blake (6-0) finished strong to earn the 4-3 victory.
Endicott will see action next on Friday, April 18th as they host Roger Williams for a doubleheader at 3/5PM. Friday will also mark Senior Day for the Blue and Green.
