The Class of 2025 Bates ivy stone shows love for Lewiston

By Alexandra DeMarco

Maine - Seeking to honor both Bates and the community that has been the Class of 2025’s home for four years, E.J. Holm ’25 of Hamilton, N.Y., found inspiration for this year’s ivy stone design in the grid of city streets surrounding campus.

Departing from the traditional campus

Bates named a Fulbright Top Producer for 14th straight year

Bates is among just 11 undergraduate colleges that have earned Fulbright Student Top Producer honors every year since 2012.

For the 14th consecutive year, Bates has been recognized as a Top Producer of Fulbright U.S. Student awards, the U.S. Department of State announced today.

The honor, also reported in The Chronicle of Higher Education today, recognizes the college’s five Fulbrighters who are now in Cyprus, Bulgaria, Norway, Taiwan, and Thailand participating in study and research exchanges or serving as English-teaching assistants in local schools.

Bates is among just 11 undergraduate liberal arts colleges that can claim

Bates College Women's lacrosse falls 15-13 at No. 18 Bowdoin

Annie Duke scored four goals on Wednesday, April 4, 2018 at No. 18 nationally ranked Bowdoin. (File photo by Theophil Syslo/Bates College)

BRUNSWICK, Maine -- The Bates women's lacrosse team rallied from four goals down to take the lead but the No. 18 nationally ranked Bowdoin College Polar Bears scored the final three goals of the game to defeat the Bobcats by a score of 15-13 Wednesday night. 

The Bobcats (6-5, 1-5 NESCAC) stormed out of the gate, scoring the first four goals of the contest and taking an early 6-1 lead. Seniors Annie Duke (Englewood, Colo.) and Teal Otley (Cumberland, Maine) sparked the game-opening surge with two goals apiece to give Bates the early edge.

Bowdoin (7-3, 3-3 NESCAC) rallied on the backs of Hannah Hirschfeld, Kara Finnerty and Katherine Miller, all who scored twice in the first half. The Polar Bears ended the opening frame on a 6-0 run to take a 7-6 lead at intermission.

Bowdoin scored the first three goals of the second half, including a pair from Eliza Denious, to take a 10-6 lead with 28:44 to go. The Polar Bears still held a four-goal edge, 12-8, with under 21 minutes to go in regulation.

Bates mounted a huge rally, scoring five goals in a span of nine minutes to erase Bowdoin's lead and regain the advantage, 13-12, on an Otley score with 11:54 to go.

Bowdoin settled and regained control, tallying the next three goals from Denious, Miller and Kate Kelly, and the Polar Bear defense held Bates scoreless for the final 11:54 to clinch the win. 

Miller led all players with four goals and two assists in the win for Bowdoin while Hirschfeld also scored four times. Denious added three goals for Bowdoin while Hirschfeld led the team with two ground balls and three caused turnovers.

Duke and Otley had four goals apiece for Bates, who got ten draw controls from senior Allison Dewey (Vergennes, Vt.).

Kayli Weiss stopped seven shots for Bowdoin while junior Eliza Statile (Ipswich, Mass.) made eight saves for Bates.

The Bobcats are back in action Saturday on the road for a noon tilt at Connecticut College.

No. 24 women's lacrosse falls 14-10 to Hamilton

Recap, photo courtesy of Bates College

LEWISTON, Maine -- Hamilton took an early 4-1 lead and forced the No. 24 nationally ranked Bates women's lacrosse team to play catchup the rest of the way in a 14-10 NESCAC victory Saturday at Garcelon Field.

The host Bobcats (6-4, 1-4 NESCAC) saw their three-game winning streak end despite a 33-28 advantage in shots attempted, although the Continentals (4-5, 2-3 NESCAC) had a 23-22 edge in shots on goal and a crucial 15-11 advantage in draw controls, including a 10-5 difference in the first half.

Hamilton received big games from Nicole Lyons (3 goals, 3 assists), Darby Philbrick (3 goals, 9 draw controls), Skyler Simson (3 goals, 3 draw controls) and goalie Hannah Burrall (12 saves) in their road win.

Junior Katie Allard (Rdigewood, N.J.) led Bates in scoring with a game-high four goals, increasing

Bates rowing teams open successfully vs. MIT, Georgetown, Harvard/Radcliffe

The Bates women's second varsity eight defeated competition from MIT, Georgetown, Radcliffe and Simmons on March 31, 2018. (File photo by Connor Cahill for Bates College)

BOSTON -- The Bates men's and women's rowing teams competed in their first races of the spring season Saturday on the Charles River Basin, to great success.

The No. 1 nationally ranked women's team accumulated an 8-2 mark against Simmons and lightweight crews from Radcliffe, MIT and Georgetown. Meanwhile the Bates men went 5-4 against boats from Harvard, Trinity and Boston College.

The Bates men were outraced only by the Harvard lightweights, but also outpaced Trinity and BC over MV8, M2V8 and M3V8 races. Harvard won the MV8 race over runner-up Bates, 6:17.5 to 6:32.8, with Trinity (6:36.77) and BC (6:38.86) taking third and fourth places. The M2V8 race proved to be the same order of finish, with Harvard winning by over 20 seconds over Bates (6:20.435 to 6:40.496), with Trinity (6:44.708) third and BC (6:48.248) fourth. Bates' M3V8 finished the 2,000-meter course in 7:04.1, trailing two Harvard boats and outpacing BC.

Rowing against Simmons and the MIT lightweight women's crews (MIT is a Division I women's rowing program), the defending NCAA Division III champion Bates women finished a close second to MIT in varsity eights and defeated the competition decisively in W2V8 and W3V8 races.

The MIT lightweight WV8 outpaced Bates 7:35.4 to 7:38.7 over 2,000 meters in a gusting cross headwind, with Simmons third out of three boats in 8:15.9. But in W2V8s, Bates defeated MIT lightweights with the fastest time of the day, 7:23.0 to 7:39.9, with Simmons third (8:01.2). And in W3V8s, Bates defeated MIT lightweights head-to-head 7:59.0 to 8:14.6.

The Bates women additionally raced WV8, W2V8 and W3V8 races with Radcliffe and Georgetown lightweights. Bates' WV8 finished second to Gergetown (7:04.716) but edged Radcliffe 7:20.845 to 7:22.967.

The Bates women also showed great depth in the second two races. In W2V8s, Bates (7:31.401) far outpaced Georgetown (7:40.644) and Radcliffe (7:44.989), and in W3V8s the Bobcats (8:22.0) defeated Radcliffe (8:42.3) by more than 20 seconds.

The Bates rowing teams will compete in Worcester, Mass., on April 8, against host WPI in addition to boats from Clark, Simmons, Mount Holyoke, Pacific Lutheran and Hamilton.

Recap, photo courtesy of Bates College.

Bates College Softball drops NESCAC East opener at Trinity

Bates softball dropped its NESCAC opener 9-1 to Trinity on March 30, 2018 in Hartford. (File photo by Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)

HARTFORD, Conn. -- Trinity took the first game of the Bates softball team's opening series of NESCAC East Division play by a 9-1 score Friday, ending the game on the eight-run rule on Courtney Erickson's RBI single in the sixth inning.

The host Bantams (9-5, 1-0 NESCAC East) had taken an 8-0 lead through three innings. Bates (9-4, 0-1) extended the game by an inning on first-year Mary Collette's (Watertown, Conn.) sacrifice fly in the top of the fifth and a shutout sixth thrown by sophomore starter Kirsten Pelletier (Sidney, Maine).

Pelletier (5-2) allowed a leadoff double to Michelle Treglia in the bottom of the sixth, and Erickson followed with the game-ending single.

Trinity senior Rachael Smith picked up her fifth win of the season for the Bantams, allowing one earned run on four hits. Erickson went 2-for-4 with a pair of RBIs while Meaghan Race also drove in two runs.

Bobcat first-year Caroline Bass (Newton, Mass.) went 2-for-3 at the plate, while sophomore Julia Panepinto (Buffalo, N.Y.) went 1-for-1 with two walks.

Trinity got things going in the first when Erica Merullo started the inning with a base hit before swiping second. Merullo advanced to third on a ground ball out by Treglia before crossing the plate on an RBI single by Erickson.

Bates threatened in the top of the second after a walk by Collette and singles from senior Paige Ahlholm (North Andover, Mass.) and Pelletier loaded the bases. But Smith left the bases loaded while keeping the Bobcats off the scoreboard for the time being.

The Bantams scored twice more in the home half thanks to a double to deep left-center by Thomas that scored Nicole Towner, before Thomas later scored on a passed ball.

Trinity took advantage of three Bobcat errors in the third inning to open up an 8-0 advantage, as Thomas and Race both drove in runs on RBI singles.

After a scoreless fourth inning by both sides, Bates stayed alive in the fifth when junior Andrea Russo (Cheshire, Conn.), who led the inning off with a walk, scored on a sacrifice fly by Collette. Pelletier, Bates' starting pitcher, kept the Bantams from scoring in the home half despite getting two runners on with no outs, but the Bantams came through the following inning.

Pelletier (5-2) went 5 1/3 innings and gave up four earned runs on 10 hits and four walks with two strikeouts.

Bates College Baseball falls 3-1 to Bowdoin in NESCAC opener

Recap, photo courtesy of Bates College

WATERVILLE, Maine -- The Bowdoin College Polar Bears scored a run in the sixth and another in the seventh to defeat the Bates baseball team by a score of 3-1 Friday afternoon in the NESCAC opener for both teams played at Colby College. 

After falling behind early, Bates (3-8, 0-1 NESCAC) tied the game in the top of the sixth thanks to a trio of sophomores. Sophomore Pat Beaton (West Newbury, Mass.) reached on an infield single to start the frame. Sophomore Zach Avila (San Francisco, Calif.) bunted him to second and sophomore Jack Arend (Newfields, N.H.) doubled in Beaton to even the score at one. 

Bowdoin starter Max Vogel-Freedman (2-1) got the next two batters out to end the frame. Then the Polar Bears (7-6, 1-0 NESCAC) took the lead for good in the bottom half of the inning. Brandon Lopez led off with a single to left. One out later, Jack Wilhoite smacked a single of his own. Nick Sadler walked to load the bases and Connor Lee's RBI fielder's choice put Bowdoin up 2-1.

The inning ended when Colby Joncas hit a sharp liner to right-center. Senior Connor DiVincenzo (Westwood, Mass.) made a spectacular diving catch to rob Joncas of extra bases. 

Senior captain Connor Russell (Cumberland, Maine) got the start for Bates on Friday and tossed six innings of two-run ball, scattering six hits, walking two and striking out three along the way. Vogel-Freedman earned the win for Bowdoin with six innings of one-run ball, scattering six hits, walking one and striking out five. 

Both teams went to their respective bullpens to begin the seventh inning with Bates down 2-1. Joe Gentile's RBI double gave the Polar Bears an insurance run in the bottom of the seventh. 

In the top of the eighth, Bowdoin moved Wilhoite from first base to pitcher. He retired the Bobcats in order in the eighth but Bates threatened in the ninth.

Senior Asher MacDonald (Hillsborough, N.C.) walked to begin the inning. Two outs later, first-year Noah Loughlin (Mililani, Hawaii) delivered a pinch-hit single, advancing first-year pinch runner Rob Matson (West Hartford, Conn.) to third. Wilhoite was able to strike out the next batter, securing his third save of the season. 

DiVincenzo went 2-4 at the plate with a double for Bates. Junior Dan Trulli (Melrose, Mass.) tallied a double as well. Arend's RBI double in the sixth drove in the lone run for Bates. Lopez, Wilhoite and Lee all tallied two hits apiece for Bowdoin. Joncus gave the Polar Bears an early 1-0 lead with an RBI single in the second inning. Sophomore Miles Michaud (Madison, Conn.) gave up one run in one inning out of the bullpen and junior Alex Simon (Windsor, Conn.) tossed a scoreless eighth for Bates.

Bates will look to win the series Saturday when the Bobcats play host in Waterville to Bowdoin in a doubleheader. First pitch of game one is set for 12:00 p.m.

Bates College Women's lacrosse scores 11-10 comeback victory at Williams

Katie Allard scored three goals, including Bates' final score in an 11-10 win at Williams on March 24, 2018. (File photo by Theophil Syslo/Bates College)

WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. -- The Bates women's lacrosse team scored six straight goals in the second half to erase a 9-5 deficit, and junior goalie Eliza Statile's save with three seconds remaining preserved the Bobcats' 11-10 NESCAC win at Williams on Saturday.

Statile (Ipswich, Mass.) made a career-high 14 saves in the victory, which was Bates' (5-3, 1-3 NESCAC) third in a row over the Ephs (3-4, 1-3 NESCAC) since 2016.

The first half saw the two teams alternate scoring goals with Williams netting the first goal of the game and Bates notching the last goal of the first half to tie the game at 4.

The first portion of the second half belonged to Williams, as the Ephs outscored the Bobcats 5-1 in the first 9:14 with Kara Wollmers netting two goals in that run. A Wollmers goal set up by a feed from Caroline Hogan at 20:46 gave Williams the 9-5 lead.

Bates responded just over three minutes later when first-year Summer Dias (Newton, Mass.) scored on a free position opportunity, which began the run of six straight goals by the Bobcats.

Senior Teal Otley (Cumberland, Maine) scored two in the decisive run, including a free-position shot that gave the Bobcats the lead for good, at 10-9 with 8:20 to go.

Dias controlled the ensuing draw, and 15 seconds after Otley's score, junior Sydney Howard (Ashland, Mass.) fed junior Katie Allard (Ridgewood, N.J.) for the goal that would give prove to be the game-winner with 8:05 left in the game.

Olivia Gomez scored with 3:48 to go for Williams, narrowing the score to 11-10. But Statile stopped Claire Fitzpatrick's shot at the 3:10 mark, then again with seven seconds remaining to preserve Bates' victory.

Statile stopped four Eph free position attempts in the first half and allowed just one Eph free position score, by Emma Tenbarge. Tenbarge was the lone Williams player to score more than one goal in the first half as she tallied two.

Bates senior Allison Dewey (Vergennes, Vt.) scored two goals in the first half, but it was a goal by first-year defender Avery Prince (Chevy Chase, Md.) with her back to the goal with just 33 seconds left in the first half, assisted by senior Camille Belletete (Jaffrey, N.H.), that knotted the score at 4-4.

Dewey and Allard scored three goals apiece and Otley had two for Bates, while senior Annie Duke (Englewood, Colo.) contributed two assists. Senior Camille Belletete (Jaffrey, N.H.) tied Fitzpatrick for the game high in draw controls (4). Senior Allie Solms (Bedford, N.H.) tied Duke for the team lead in caused turnovers (2) and added two ground balls.

Williams' Tenbarge and Wollmers tied for game high in goals with three each.

Eph netminder Kami Cisneros made one save in 54:50 and allowed 11 goals, and Ana Alverenga played the final 5:10 and made one save.

Bates next plays a non-conference game at St. Joseph's College of Maine, Thursday at 6pm.

Chlastawa scores seven times and Bates College men's lacrosse rolls to 21-8 win over Keene State

Matt Chlastawa tallied seven goals and three assists and the Bates men's lacrosse team downed Keene State 21-8 on March 20, 2018. (Theophil Syslo/Bates College)

LEWISTON, Maine -- Sophomore Matt Chlastawa scored four of his game-high seven goals in the second quarter and the Bates men's lacrosse team rolled to a 21-8 victory over Keene State Tuesday night. 

Bates (4-3) won its third straight game and defeated the Owls (3-3) for the eighth straight time. Keene State took a brief 1-0 lead early in the contest before the Bobcats tallied nine straight goals to take a commanding lead they did not surrender.

Chlastawa (Westfield, Mass.) dished out three assists Tuesday to go along with his seven goals and currently leads the NESCAC in goals scored (26) and is second in assists with 14.

Sophomore Curtis Knapton (Westbrook, Maine) tallied the equalizer on an assist from senior captain Burke Smith (Wilton, Conn.) with 11:55 left in the first quarter. Then senior captain Clarke Jones (Pepper Pike, Ohio) gave Bates the lead for good with 11:06 left in the first. Senior Jack O'Brien (Rye, N.Y.) tallied the first of his two assists on the play. 

Senior Max Breschi (Carlisle, Pa.) and first-year Jack Scribner (Falmouth, Maine) added goals later in the quarter to give the Bobcats a 4-1 lead after the first 15 minutes of action.

Chlastawa really got going in the second quarter. He scored three straight times in the opening five minutes and then assisted on a Knapton goal to push the Bobcat advantage to 8-1. Chlastawa only missed one shot attempt in the game.

Senior Jack Maritz (St. Louis, Mo.) tallied his second goal of the season to put the Bobcats up 9-1 with 6:05 left in the half. 

The Owls' Jon Nassif, who opened the scoring in the first quarter, broke up the Bates run with his second goal of the game on an assist from Anthony Marcella with 3:47 remaining in the half. But junior Andrew Small (Deerfield, Ill.) found Chlastawa scored 32 seconds later for the lefty attacker's fourth goal of the quarter, giving Bates a 10-2 halftime lead. 

Bates outscored Keene State 6-3 in the third quarter and 5-3 in the fourth to wrap up the win. Sophomore Brendan Mullally (Baltimore, Md.) added a hat trick for the Bobcats, with all three of his goals coming in the third quarter, including a nifty behind-the-back score on a behind-the-back pass from Chlastawa.

Breschi, Scribner, Knapton and junior Matt Kelleher (Newburyport, Mass.) added two goals apiece Tuesday for Bates. Nassif and Paul Beling led the way for the Owls with two goals each.

Sophomore Rob Strain (Montclair, N.J.) made 12 saves in the cage and junior Mitchell Drake (Annapolis, Md.) added four saves off the bench. 

The Bobcats scored 21 goals on 46 shots while the Owls tallied eight scores on 41 shots. Bates won the ground ball battle 44-37.

First-year Devin Russell (Falmouth, Maine) scored his first career goal with 2:55 left in the game.

Bates returns to NESCAC action and hosts Williams this Saturday at 1:00 p.m.