Softball Slips in Extras to Nichols in CCC Tournament

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – The sixth-seeded Suffolk softball team came back in the seventh, took the lead, but the third seed Bison of Nichols tied things up in the bottom of the inning and eventually walked off the CCC Tournament contest in the 10th inning, 7-6 Tuesday afternoon at the Golden Bears Softball Park. 

THE BASICS
SCORE: Suffolk 6 | Nichols 7
RECORDS: Suffolk (19-23) | Nichols (23-18)  

HOW IT HAPPENED
Suffolk found itself in a three-run hole after the first as the Bison rallied around three hits to take an early 3-0 edge.  

The Rams trimmed the deficit down three innings later. Delaney Doidge barreled a one-out single to left and Ashley Hubner took her spot on the bags. The pinch runner put on her running shoes when Julia Mills laced a single to right to put the blue-and-gold on the board.  

The two-run game was short lived as Nichols answered with one run of its own in the home half of the inning to restore the three-run gap. 

Nichols extended matters even further in the bottom of the fifth, 5-1.  

Suffolk started its comeback in the sixth. An error when Mills put the ball in play to get the inning going helped. The Rams second baseman advanced 60 feet behind a 43 ground out by Lily Gustafson and strutted in thanks to Bella Rocha-Medeiros single through the left side to pull the blue-and-gold back within three, 5-2.  

Another Bison fielding mishap allowed Maddie Southers to reach first safely to get the seventh stanza underway and Jolie Quintana wore a pitch to put two ducks in the pond for Catherine Carignan. The sophomore slugged a two-run double to make it a one-run margin, 5-4. 

After a Nichols pitching change, back-to-back Suffolk base hits let the game-tying run come home. Lily Gustafson's bat came up big as the short stop shot a single through the right side to bring the go-ahead run in. 

The Bison kept things interesting in the bottom of the inning. Chloe Steinger was hit by a pitch and worked her way around the bases on a sac and locked things at 6-all thanks to Bailey Littlefield's single up the middle.  

Ashlyn Conley sat Sydney Manzione down swinging before Lily Newhall came in to take over the circle and fanned Ava Slavinsky via the same result to send the game into extra innings. 

The Rams stranded a runner in the eighth, ninth and 10th to keep things even at 6-all. An error by Suffolk's third baseman Becky Zellin allowed Slavinsky to take first to get the hbottom of the 10th underway. A sac by Mary Jo-Laudat pushed her 60 feet and Erin Gour brought her around with a two-out single to right to hand the blue-and-gold the 7-6 setback.  

PITCHERS PICTURE

• Newhall took the loss after giving up one unearned run on two hits and one walk with one strikeout in 3.0 innings of relief. 
• Cynthia Rucinski started and allowed ive runs on five hits and five walks with three Ks in 4.0 innings. 
• Conley compiled a one-run, four-hit, one-walk, one-strikeout effort in 2.2 innings. 
• Chelsea Indyk secured the win behind 3.2 innings of scoreless relief with two hits and one walk allowed and five punchouts to her credit. 
• Olivia Pedro started and put together a five-run (three earned), six-hit, two-walk, one-strikeout effort in 6.0 innings. 
• Cassidy Machado came out of the pen for 0.1 inning. She let up one run, unearned, on three hits.  

STATISTICALLY SPEAKING

• Mills went 2-for-4 with two RBI and one run. 
• Zellin produced two hits and scored one run. 
• Carignan brought in two runs on one hit, a double, and scored one run. 
• Gustafson added two hits and one RBI. 
• Rocha-Medeiros pitched in one hit, one RBI and one walk. 
• Southers upplied one hit and one run. 
• Doidge logged two hits including one double. 

NOTEWORTHY

• Suffolk played its first extra-inning game in the CCC Tournament. 
• Suffolk went into extra innings in a conference playoff game for the first time since the GNAC Tournament Second Round May 2, 2019 against Saint Joseph's (Maine). The Rams fell in that game, 6-4, in 11 innings. 
• The Rams won a conference postseason game in extra innings for the first time since besting Emmanuel, 4-3, in eight innings in the GNAC Semifinals, May 6, 20218.  
• The Rams and Bison battled in the CCC Tournament for the first time in program history. 
• Suffolk and Nichols needed extra time to decide a winner for the second time, first since game one of the regular-season doubleheader earlier this year, April 13, 2024. 
• The Rams are now 1-1 in the CCC Tournament in the Megan Cook era. 
• Suffolk moved to 0-3 versus Nichols under Cook's guidance.  

WHAT'S NEXT?
Suffolk will face Roger Williams Friday, May 10 in an elimination game. First pitch is at 10:00 a.m. at Endicott's Softball Complex.