Softball Falls to Emerson, 11-9, in Two Extra Innings, in Game 1

BOSTON – A late run by the Emerson softball team and an error at the wrong time found Suffolk softball on the wrong side of an 11-10 nine-inning decision Thursday night at Rotch Field with the Lions picking up the non-conference victory. 

THE BASICS
SCORE: Suffolk 10, Emerson 11
RECORDS: Suffolk (5-8) | Emerson (4-10) 

HOW IT HAPPENED
With two outs on the board in the top of the first an Emerson error kept the inning alive and put Devlin Frost on first then the hitting show showed up. The next four Rams in the lineup – Jill Pulek, Delaney Sylvester, Lindsay Pagano and Madison Eucalitto - struck for doubles all to the either side of center field to quickly make it a 4-0 Suffolk game. 

The blue-and-gold defense kept the Lions still for the next two innings before Suffolk stretched its advantage to 6-0. Sylvester drew a walk to lead off and see-saw action of Lions' errors and a base on balls brought in the Rams' fifth run of the day. Emerson made a change in the circle with Erin Nolan coming out of the pen, but she was no match from Morgan Parmeter, who tallied a single, plating Pagano in the process to advance the lead to six runs after 2.5 frames.   

After another three-up, three-down inning for the Lions, Pulek went yard to lead off the top of the fourth and just like that Suffolk grabbed a 7-0 edge over its Boston Commons neighbor. Parmeter followed suit to open the fifth with a homer of her own sending the rock over the left field fence to push the score to 8-0 in the Rams' favor. 

Ali Yamakaitis carried a no hitter into the bottom of the fifth, but the Lions bats started to heat up. The hosts rallied behind Shelby Carney's RBI single and ran in five more runs to trim Suffolk's lead to two, 8-6, after five complete innings. 

The tides turned completely in Emerson's favor to in the bottom of the sixth. Once again the Lions used a single from Carney to get things going with Caroline Fortuna drawing a walk to set up Jacqueline DeFusco's go-ahead three RBI bomb to put the hosts in front for the first time on the day, 9-8. 

With a do-or-die situation on its hands and one-out on the board, Ashley Zulla sent a rocket over the left field fence to keep the Rams alive, tying the game. The Lions handled the remainder Rams at the plate to send the game into the bottom of the ninth locked at 9-9. 

With one out and Emerson runners on first and second, Yamakaitis fanned back-to-back Lions swinging to force the extra inning. 

The team's traded runs in the eighth with Pagano bringing in the Rams on a ground out and a Suffolk error allowing the Lions to tie things once again. 

Emerson kept the Rams off the scoreboard in the top of the ninth and capitalized once again on a blue-and-gold mistake to claim the 11-10 win. 

PITCHERS PICTURE

• Yamakaitis worked 7.1 innings on the mound, giving up eight runs, four earned, off five hits with three walks and a career-high 10 Ks.
• Hanna DelCervo came in as relief, faced seven batters in 1.0 inning. The freshman gave up three runs on three hits.  
• Keely Marquez and Erin Nolan split time in the circle for Emerson. Marquez earned the decision with an eight-run (four earned), six-hit, five-strikeout day in 5.1 innings of action. Nolan, meanwhile, tossed 3.2 innings allowing two runs off six hits and sat down one hitter. 

STATISTICALLY SPEAKING

• Seven different Rams accounted for Suffolk's 12 hits with six producing two hit days in Zulla, Pulek, Sylvester, Eucalitto and Parmeter.
• Sylvester led the way on at the dish, going 2-for-3 with one RBI on a double and two runs scored.
• Parmeter, Pulek and Zulla, who all went 2-for-5 at the plate, each knocked dingers.
• Pagano, Pulek and Sylvester contributed two runs apiece. 

NOTEWORTHY

• Suffolk played its first nine-inning game since falling 10-9 to Muskingum in nine frames March 13, 2014.
• The Rams played in their second extra-inning game of the season.
• Suffolk is 3-8 when needing more time to complete a game and 1-1 this season.
• Yamakaitis' 10 strikeouts mark the most by a hurler in blue-and-gold since Kathleen Slavin sat down 10 batters in a 6-2 win over Anna Maria April 1, 2015.
• Suffolk's three homers are the most by the Rams in a single outing since matching that number in an 11-0 victory over Rivier April 30, 2016.
• Suffolk knocked several homeruns for the second straight game marking the first time that the Rams had back-to-back contests with multiple hits out of the park since connecting for a pair of homers against Emmanuel and Albertus Magnus in the GNAC Tournament last season. 

POST-GAME PIC

UP NEXT                                                                                                                                    Suffolk wraps up the doubleheader against Emerson in the nightcap with first pitch set for 8:20 p.m.