By Allison Goldsmith
I&M Sports Editor
The varsity softball team has stumbled slightly out of the gate following spring vacation, losing two games this week. The Whalers fell to Division I Nauset in a tight 5-2 game on Thursday and lost to Ursuline Academy on Friday 13-7.
“Nauset is a decent team and we knew that going in. Playing a Division I school we expected a real good game, but the bottom line is we did not hit the ball well and they played a good defensive game. When we did hit the ball hard, they made the plays, especially in the outfield,” head coach Chris Maury said.
The Whalers (8-3) will look to get back on track with back-to-back home games against Cape Cod Tech this afternoon and Parker Charter tomorrow before traveling to Martha’s Vineyard Monday.
Against an Ursuline team they beat on Nantucket before vacation, the Whalers struggled on Friday.
“You want to go in and play better the second time and the bottom line is we didn’t, in all aspects of the game. We didn’t pitch as well, we didn’t hit as well and we didn’t field as well. When you do that against a team that’s a good team, you are going to get stung,” Maury said.
The Bears scored eight unearned runs in the first three innings to take an 8-1 lead over the Whalers.
“We took ourselves out of the ball game. We let early mistakes get to us and we got down on ourselves and we allowed them to capitalize on the mistakes,” Maury said. “You just can’t do that when you face good teams.”
The Whalers were down 13-3 before the battled their way back into the game in the sixth inning.
“The good news in this game was that we kept scraping and put four runs on the board in that inning and at least made a run at them. It is not like they are quitting,” Maury said.
Nantucket scored one run in the second inning when Cassie Moran walked, moved to second on a passed ball and scored on a single by Spencer Perry. Two double plays by Ursuline kept the Whalers off the basepaths until the sixth inning.
Molly Lentowski knocked a two-run single in the sixth to highlight the inning. Shantel Hanniford had two singles in the game and scored two runs. Jess Guevara, Kelly Reid and Lindsay Fry also had hits in the game. Olivia Hull pitched five innings, allowing seven hits, seven walks and five earned runs while striking out five.
Against Nauset on Thursday, the Whalers left runners in scoring position in five of the seven innings, while the top five batters in the order were 2-for-17 in the game.
“We couldn’t produce hits when we needed them,” Maury said.
Nauset scored two runs in the bottom of the first inning, but the Whalers were able to respond with a run in the second to cut the deficit in half. Moran singled and was replaced by runner Morgan Dugan. Dugan stole second, moved to third on a passed ball and scored on a sacrifice fly by Grace-Anne Tornovish.
The Warriors added one run in the third, and the 3-1 score held until the sixth inning.
“It was a close game all the way. The sixth inning hurt. They played a lot of small ball, a lot of bunting. They only hit a couple balls real hard,” Maury said.
Nauset scored twice in the sixth to open the 5-1 lead. Hanniford connected with Moran behind the plate to throw out a runner at home to keep the lead within reach.
In the seventh, Whitney Butler walked, stole second and scored on the overthrow into centerfield. It would be the final run for the Whalers in the game.
Hanniford and Moran had two hits each in the game, while Tornovish added one and collected the lone RBI. Hull pitched six innings, allowing four earned runs on nine hits: eight singles and one double.
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