Softball Takes One of Two at Dean

Softball Takes One of Two at Dean


FRANKLIN, Mass. -- The Mitchell College softball team split a doubleheader at Dean College on Wednesday afternoon, losing 11-9 in the opener before holding on for an 8-6 win in the nightcap.

The Mariners (3-6 overall) handed the Bulldogs (5-1 overall) their first loss of the spring thanks to big home runs from Reanna Clark and Danielle Autieri. Suzanne Vachon did her part in the circle, tossing a complete game to earn her first collegiate victory.  

Mitchell will next host Lyndon State University on Thursday, March 30 at 3 p.m.

Game 1 - Dean 11, Mitchell 9

A home run by Vachon and an RBI double by Megan Elphick gave Mitchell a 2-0 lead in the top of the first inning. After Dean tied the game in the home half, the Mariners pulled ahead 5-2 in the third behind an RBI single by Autieri and a two-run single by Taylor Duchesneau.

The Bulldogs put up five runs in the fourth to vault back into the lead. In the fifth, the Mariners responded with two runs to tie the game at 7-7. Elphick delivered an RBI single in the frame and later scored on a triple by Duchesneau.

Mitchell took the lead once again in the sixth when Tanisha Ruiz scored on a passed ball. However, Dean plated four runs in the bottom of the sixth, enough to withstand a solo homer by Elphick in the seventh before the Mariners ran out of outs.

Elphick finished a triple shy of the cycle and drove in three runs on the day. Duchesneau, who also knocked in three runs, took the loss in the circle, giving up 11 runson 13 hits while striking out three. 

Game 2 - Mitchell 8, Dean 6

A two-run blast by Autieri gave Mitchell another early 2-0 advantage which didn't last long, as Dean battled back to tie the game at 3-3 after three innings. That all changed in the fifth after the Mariners scored five runs to make it 8-3. Clark provided the big blow with a grand slam to plate the final four runs of the frame.

Vachon (1-1 overall) had enough to hold off the Bulldogs late. She allowed single runs in the fifth, sixth and seventh innings but never let the tying run come to the plate. She finished with three strikeouts and walked two while allowing 12 hits.