Errors Costly as Softball Falls to Bates

Photo courtesy of Thomas College

Courtesy of Bates Sports Information

LEWISTON, Maine – The Thomas College softball team allowed seven unearned runs in the third inning en route to a 8-3 loss at Bate College on Thursday afternoon.

The Bobcats (10-6) collected 10 hits in the game and their three pitchers combined to limit the Terriers (8-10) to four hits.

Bates starter Kirsten Pelletier threw three strong innings, giving up one run on one hit and two walks and striking out six batters. Payton Buxton took over in the fourth inning and went 2 2/3 innings and allowing a run to pick up the victory, rising to 3-3 on the season. Buxton also drove in three runs on the day. Jevan Sandhu pitched the final 1 1/3 innings, allowing one run.

All seven of Bates' runs in the third were unearned, capitalizing on four Thomas errors. Paige Ahlholm led off with a single off of Thomas starter Sydney LeBourveau (Jericho, Vt.), and the next three batters reached on Terrier errors, giving Bates a 2-1 lead.

Buxton then laced a one-out single to right center to score Andrea Russo and Caroline Bass. Two batters later, Mary Collette doubled to the fence in left-center to score Buxton with Bates' lone extra-base hit on the day. Bates added two more runs on India Woolmington's RBI groundout, followed by Ahlholm's second hit of the inning, an RBI single to left that scored Collette for a 7-1 Bates lead.

Thomas had taken a 1-0 lead as Katie Taylor (Lebanon, Maine) drew a leadoff walk, stole second and scored on Anna Piirainen's (West Paris, Maine) single to left.

The Terriers closed the gap to 7-3 in the top of the sixth as Breanna Whitmarsh (Puyallup, Wash.) was walked by Buxton, then Lauren Farina (Schenectady, N.Y.) greeted Sandhu with a double to right center. Kayla Bess (Madison, Maine) followed with another double to right center to score Farina and Whitmarsh, but Sandhu got out of the inning with a ground ball to second.

Bates got one run back from its former lead in the bottom of the sixth when Russo scored from third on a Buxton grounder to shortstop.

Thomas will play a North Atlantic Conference doubleheader Saturday at New England College.