Since the last publication of The Hoot, the Brandeis softball team has played seven games. The first three were a part of a home-series against the Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) Tartans. The next three were away against the Washington University at St. Louis (WashU) Bears. To wrap up their most recent games, they faced the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Engineers in Cambridge this past Wednesday.
In their series against the CMU Tartans, the Judges lost the first two games and won the final game of the series to go 1-2 on the weekend. The first two games were played as a doubleheader on Friday, April 11. During the first game, the Judges lost 0-1 to the Tartans with only one player, Brooke Boehmer ’27, getting the only two hits of the game for Brandeis. Ragini Kannan ’26 had pitched a perfect game up until the top of the seventh, when the Tartans were able to capitalize with very little opportunities left to do so.
In the second game of the day, the Judges had a bit of a rougher go as they lost again, but this time it was 1-6, CMU. The Judges simply could not keep up with the momentum the Tartans established, starting in the first inning with two runs, and then going to score two more runs for every third inning played. The Judges had four hits, and their only run was earned when Katie Baydian ’27 singled to center field, which allowed Erin Hunt ’26 to score. Other hits for the Judges were earned by Dylan Yamaura ’28, Bells Burdenski ’26 and Anna Kolb ’25.
The following day, the odds were in the Judges’ favor as they went on to win the only game of the day 5-4. The Judges came into the first inning with the aggression that they were lacking the day prior; they got four runs in the bottom of the first. These runs were a result of three key plays. First, Burdenski ’26 flew out to left field with a sacrifice fly, earning an RBI with Baydian ’27 scoring, Haley Nash ’25 advancing to second and Boehmer advancing to third. Next, Jordan Wallace ’28 reached first on a throwing error by the CMU shortstop, which allowed her to advance to second, and both Nash ’25 and Boehmer ’27 to score unearned runs. Lastly, to close out the first, Tristan Boyer ’25 singled to left field which earned her an RBI as Wallace ’28 scored another unearned run. The most exciting part of the game came in the bottom of the eighth inning when Burdenski ’26 singled through the left side, walking it off with an RBI to allow Boehmer ’27 to score the winning run of the game in epic fashion.
The Judges were scheduled to have a game against the Endicott College Gulls the following Tuesday; however, that game got rescheduled.
The following weekend, the Judges traveled to St. Louis, Missouri to play the #12-ranked WashU Bears in another three-game series. This series did not go as well as the Judges had hoped, as they lost all three games. Despite this, the Judges did put up a good fight as they scored points in the first two games, nearly winning the second in a close battle. In the first game against the Bears, the Judges got six runs to the Bears’ 11. Out of these runs, the Judges scored one home run, which came in the top of the fifth inning. This run was a solo-homer by Kolb ’25. The other two successful at-bats for the Judges were doubles, one by Kolb ’25 and another by Nash ’25. Otherwise, the game was unfortunately uneventful for the Judges scoring-wise.
In the second game the Judges played against the Bears, they only lost by one point, 4-5, and only got one fewer hit than the Bears’ 1. Additionally, the Bears made an error, while the Judges were free of any errors during the game. The Judges’ four runs were scored in the first, fourth and seventh innings. The first two runs came in the top of the first when Kolb ’25 doubled to center field, earning two RBIs as both Boehmer ’26 and Maddie Manes ’26 scored. This hit also advanced Nash ’25 to third, but nothing came of that baserunner movement. The next run for the Judges was in the top of the fourth when Yamamura ’28 singled up the middle, earning an RBI as Burdenski ’26 scored off of this hit. The Judges’ final run was scored when Burdenski ’26 reached on a fielder’s choice to shortstop, earning an RBI as Mary Doud ’28 scored. After that, the score was tied 4-4 going into the bottom of the seventh, but the Judges were unable to defend their plate enough. The Bears walked it off with a fly out to centerfield which earned them the last RBI they needed to sweep the Judges that day.
The final game the Judges played in St. Louis was not pretty, as the game was cut short due to the eight-run mercy score sanctioned by the University Athletic Association Conference as the Judges trailed 8-0 after the top of the fifth. During this game, the Judges did get one hit. This time it was Kolb ’25 who was on a roll for this travel trip with a hot bat.
Most recently, the Judges faced the MIT Engineers in an away game that was initially scheduled for April 9, but was rescheduled due to weather conditions. This game was huge for the Judges with Kannan ’26 on the mound. She went on to have the longest pitching outing in more than a decade. It was her who was lights-out and earned the win for the Judges. She struck out a season-high 11 batters and only allowed seven hits and two walks for a total of 141 pitches in nine frames. Offensively for the Judges, the first run they scored was in the fourth inning, when Nash ’25 flied out to center field, driving Hunt ’26 home to score. The Judges scored their second run of the game in the top of the ninth inning, which also turned out to be the winning run of the game. This run was another hit from Nash ’25 who singled to third base, driving Baydian ’27 home to win it for the Judges. All that was left to do was to have a strong defensive last frame. Kannan ’26 handled the pressure with grace and secured the win for the Judges by not allowing any more hits.
Next up, the Judges will host the Case Western Reserve University Spartans in a home weekend. This will be an exceptionally fun series for the Judges as Friday, April 25 is the Pride Game, and then the Judges’ Senior Day celebration will be held before the game on April 26. Come and support your Judges in their last home games of the season!
