The softball team came up short against the Notre Dame Tigers 7-6 on senior night Tuesday afternoon.
The Bears kicked off the night with a touching ceremony to celebrate the team’s five seniors. Members of the team gave a special speech to each senior, sharing fond memories and thanking them for the contributions they have made to the team.
“We’re going to have to fill [the seniors’] presence. They’re always in there bringing good vibes, being like older sisters to all of us,” sophomore first baseman Olivia Rodgers said.
After celebrating the seniors, the Bears started the game off with solid defense, which included a pop-fly caught by senior right fielder Elise Koo and a bouncing pitch caught by junior pitcher Gracy Nava and thrown for an out. M-A carried their momentum into the bottom half with a single by Nava. Nava stole second and third, capitalizing on errors by the Tigers’ catcher. After a flyout by junior second baseman Juliana Pandolfo, Nava tagged up, putting the Bears on the board 1-0.
Back on defense, M-A battled to make plays, allowing a walk to first. The runner eventually advanced on a fielder’s choice by Koo. Tactical pitches by Nava disarmed the batters with a variety of off-speed pitches. After a dropped catch, Notre Dame tied the game up at 1-1, and Nava ended the inning with a routine groundout.
Rodgers began the third inning by demolishing the ball to the fence, and eventually advancing home after a fumbled play by the Tigers to record an inside-the-park homerun, bringing the score to 2-1. The Bears struggled to maintain the heat, falling short at the plate to end the second inning.
Notre Dame was persistent in offense, advancing a runner to second. M-A encountered difficulty keeping the ball in the infield, eventually letting runners take second and third base. After continuous hits from the Tigers, the Bears walked out of the top of the inning down 4-2.
M-A was able to get back on its feet at the beginning of the fourth inning, forcing two groundouts and only permitting one run. Back at the plate, senior shortstop Carey Maletis crushed a ball deep to the fence for a double, and soon tagged up after a popout to take third base. Freshman third baseman Lavietani Taufahema* followed this up with a hard grounder to left field, advancing Maletis to home and setting the score at 5-3.
Building on this, Taufahema stole second after an error by the Notre Dame catcher, and after a hit from junior center fielder Emma Loose to left field, Taufahema got home to continue the Bears’ hot streak. Unfortunately, the rally was put to an end with a groundout by senior left fielder Molly Rosen, with M-A narrowly leading 5-4.
The fifth inning started with a quick strikeout delivered by Nava, followed by excellent defense from Pandolfo, who threw a ground ball for the out, then caught a fly ball on the next play. Unfortunately for the Bears, the Tigers were also on top of their defensive game, converting M-A’s first three batters into outs.
The Bears maintained their lockdown defense in the sixth inning with clever off-speed pitches by Nava and solid communication. Maletis barely allowed a throw between her legs, letting a runner advance to second base. The Tigers continued the momentum, hitting a home run and bringing the score to 7-4. Still, Rodgers was soon able to help the Bears escape the top of the sixth inning by catching a hard line drive down the first base line.
Senior catcher Kylie Cox pounded the ball to center field for a single that was punctuated by a home run by Taufahema, setting the freshman home run record and the score at 7-6. Rodgers and Loose struggled to elevate the ball, sending grounders to the Tigers’ infielders to end the sixth inning.
Carrying Taufahema’s momentum into the last inning, the Bears ensured the Tigers could not get more runs. Rosen and Koo each caught a fly ball, and Maletis quickly threw a grounder to first for the final out. Unfortunately, the Bears were unable to capitalize on their last offensive possession. After two quick outs and a diving catch by the Tigers, the final score was solidified as a 7-6 loss for M-A.
“Overall, I’m proud of the team. I know that the final score wasn’t what we were hoping for, but I think we played hard and we never gave up,” Cox said.
“We all get along really great, and it’s just nice to be playing with people you like and having a good time when you’re playing,” Maletis said.
M-A will play the Terra Nova Tigers next on Thursday away at 4:30 p.m.
*Lavietani Taufahema is a journalist for the M-A Chronicle.
