Courtesy Tufts Sports Information

Box Score

MEDFORD, Mass. - Junior Beth Gostanian (Windham, N.H.) went 3 for 4 with two RBIs to lead Trinity College to an 8-5 victory over Wesleyan University in game three of the 2007 NESCAC Softball Championship at Tufts University's Spicer Field on Saturday morning. Wesleyan is eliminated from the tournament.

Gostanian belted her team-leading seventh home run in the top of the second inning to give the Bantams a 2-0 lead and drove in her second run of the morning in the top of the seventh as the Bantams (21-10) scored four times in their half of seventh.

Senior Stacy Hills (Menlo Park, Calif.) had her soft liner fall down the left field line and then came around to score on a double down the left field line by sophomore Ariana Mullin (Woodbridge, Va.) in the top of the first. Trinity added single runs in the fifth and sixth frames to take a 4-0 lead into the bottom of the sixth.

The Cardinals (21-15) added a pair of runs in their half of the sixth, as junior Marcia Whitehead (Cambridge, Mass.) led-off with a double to center and one batter later a walk to senior Molly Gaebe (Miami, Fla.) that placed runners on first and second. Junior Joanna Brownson (Hamilton, Mich.) then doubled to right field, scoring Whitehead and Gaebe.

Trinity then added four runs in the top of the seventh, as first-year Jessica Tait (North Salem, N.Y.) led off the inning with a single and advanced to second on a fielder's choice sacrifice bunt by Hills.

Mullin then reached on a fielding error by the shortstop, scoring Tait from second. Senior Sara Dougherty (Long Valley, N.J.) grounded out to second, as Hills crossed the plate. Junior Laura Cutler (Concord, Mass.) drove in the third run of the frame with a single to center and Gostanian added her second RBI of the contest with a run-scoring single to center.

Wesleyan battled back in the bottom half of the final frame with three runs off relief pitcher Gabrielle Sergi (Walpole, Mass.). After a groundout to the pitcher, first-year Meaghan Dendy (Swansea, Mass.) lined a double to right-center, then advanced to third on a wild pitch and scored on a groundout to third by junior Becca Feiden (Takoma Park, Md.). Whitehead then belted her second double of the contest and scored one batter later on a single by Gaebe. Gaebe then crossed the plate with the Cardinals final run of the contest on a double by sophomore Molly O'Connell (Brookline, Mass.).

Junior Brittany Alvino (Warren, N.J.) went the first six innings for the Bantams and improved to 6-3 on the year. Alvino gave up two earned runs on five hits, while walking one. Gaebe went the distance for Wesleyan allowing eight earned runs on ten hits, while walking one and striking out four. Gaebe falls to 8-5 on the year. Gaebe ends her career with a Wesleyan mark of 397 strikeouts.

Tait and Hills each collected a pair of hits for Trinity, while Whitehead, who went 4 for 4, broke the Cardinals career hit mark with a single in the third and now has 122 hits.