May 7, 2009

BEVERLY, Mass. - Tufts University wasted no time in their pursuit of an NCAA Division III Regional Softball Championship as the Jumbos defeated Husson University, 17-1, in game one of the Regional Championships held on the campus of Endicott College on May 7th. The Jumbos (39-1) used a 10-run third inning to take down the Eagles (26-15) and move onto the winner's portion of the bracket.

Tufts jumped out to an early lead in the second as the Jumbos plated five runs in the frame. Tufts' Roni Herbst (Montclair, N.J.), Casey Sullivan (Berlin, Conn.), Samantha Kuhles (Somerville, N.J.), and Danielle Lopez (Danvers, Mass.) each drove in runs during the inning.

Lauren Gelmetti (Westfield, N.J.) went through the first three innings without allowing a baserunner while being staked to a 5-0 lead. The Jumbos extended their lead in the bottom of the inning by scoring 10 runs while the first eight batters reached base and inflated the lead to 15-0 by the end of the third inning.

Husson finally got on the board in the top of the fourth when Megan Bradstreet (Warren, Maine) singled to right centerfield, scoring Dorothy Cameron (South Plainfield, N.J.) who had doubled to lead off the inning. The Eagles added one more hit in the inning but do more damage as Gelmetti struck out the final two batters of the inning.

The Jumbos would add a pair in the bottom of the fourth on a Christy Tinker (Woodbridge, Conn.) homerun to extend their lead to 17-1 and closed out the first game of the tournament with a win.

Gelmetti improves to 18-0 this season by pitching four innings and giving up one run, on two hits, while striking out eight. The first three batters in the Jumbos' offense did a majority of the damage as Laura Chapman (Seattle, Wash.), Kuhles, and Lopez combined to go 9-for-12 with 8 RBI between the three.

Nicole Sargent (Sullivan, Maine) suffered the setback for the Eagles as she went two innings and gave up seven runs, all earned, on nine hits. Cameron, Bradstreet, and Rachel Volcechovski (Jefferson, N.J.) had the three hits for the Eagles while Cameron scored the only run and Bradstreet had the lone RBI.

No.1-seeded Tufts will move onto face the winner of the \#3 Endicott College/ \#6 Emerson College matchup on Friday at 2:00 p.m. Husson will move on to face the loser of that contest on Friday at 10:00 a.m.