The Brandeis softball team had a successful week playing on Marcus Field, as the Judges split a four game series with the Emory University Eagles and defeated Framingham State University in both games of the Tuesday night doubleheader. With the win, the Brandeis softball squad improved to 14-10 on the season.
After facing adversity Friday afternoon with the cancellation of their first game against Emory University, pitcher Alex Cohen ’24 helped the Judges earn a University Athletic Association (UAA) split against Emory on day one of their first home UAA doubleheader of the season. The Eagles secured the win in the opener, 8-2, but the Judges responded in game two, 7-3, to earn the split against Emory.
The Judges earned their runs in game one from a solo home run from Haley Nash ’24 and an RBI double by pitcher Cohen. Cohen had two of Brandeis’ four hits, both of which were doubles, and an RBI, while Nash totaled her third home run of the season and eighth of her career. Brandeis veteran pitcher Sydney Goldman ’22 took the loss in game one, allowing seven runs (four earned) and five hits in three innings of work; Goldman fell to 1-4 on the year. Rebecca Guerci ’24 was effective in relief, allowing just one earned run in four innings, surrendering one hit and walking three without a strikeout.
While the Eagles got off to a quick start, scoring twice in the first inning and a solo homer in the second, the Judges were able to turn the Eagles’ 3-1 lead around after subbing in relief pitcher Cohen in the ball game. Cohen walked the first hitter she faced, but recovered with a strikeout and a grounder to short to keep the game in reach.
Offensively, Cohen launched a homer to left center field, scoring the Judges second run, her second home run of the season and fourth home run of her career. Brandeis softball had a change of pace entering the fourth inning that allowed the Judges to take their first lead of the series. Shortstop Jolie Fujita (GRAD), led off with a double and first base Jamie Pippin ’23 followed with a single to short. Tristan Boyer ’25 then bunted the runners into scoring position and Lily Medici ’23 pulled a ball to left field to secure both runs; the Judges took the lead, 4-3.
Marley Felder ’22 followed Medici with a single and the two executed a perfect double steal to make it a two run game; Felder returned home on a wild pitch to give the Judges a 6-3 lead over the Eagles. In the sixth inning, Felder added an RBI single. Defensively, Cohen pitched a great game, as she retired 11 of the next 12 batters without a hit after her initial walk. In the campaign, Cohen improved to 6-1 with 4.2 innings of two-hit ball. Offensively, all nine Brandeis starters had hits, with Medici (2-3, 2 RBI, 1 R, 1 SB), Felder (2-4, RBI, R, SB) and grad student Melissa Rothenberg (3-4, 2B, R) each collecting multiple hits.
On Sunday morning, the Judges returned to action against the Eagles and after falling 9-3 in the first game, the Brandeis softball team remained focused and committed, earning a split against the visiting Eagles. Pitcher Rebecca Guerci ’24 sparked the Judges’ turnaround as she won the second game from the circle, 2-2 on the season; the Judges defeated Emory 8-4. Brandeis is now 12-10 overall for the 2022 season and 2-6 in the UAA.
The Judges were unstoppable to kick off game two, as the first five batters loaded the bases. Third base starter Nash cleared the bases with a double to center field; Nash, then, was the recipient of short stop veteran Fujita’s hit which gave the Judges a 4-0 lead against the Eagles. Fujita then scored on a sacrifice fly by Boyer to increase Brandeis’ lead to five.
After Emory made a huge adjustment by subbing in two relief pitchers, the Judges were only up 5-3 in the bottom of the sixth. Cohen and Melissa Rothenberg (GRAD) understood the assignment late and the game and were both able to slug an RBI double; Nash added an RBI single to make it 8-3. While Emory got a lead-off home run in the top of the seventh, Cohen successfully closed out the game.
Defensively, Guerci was the player of the game,improving to 2-2 on the season. Pitching six innings in the UAA matchup, Guerci only allowed 15 Emory hits, 10 of which were stranded runs; Guerci gave up four earned runs, struck out two and did not walk a batter. Offensively, the Judges have four multiple hitters. Cohen, Rothenberg, Nash and Fiona Doiron ’25 each had two hits. Tying her season best, Nash drove in a game-high four runs.
The Judges faced Framingham State for a doubleheader at home on Tuesday afternoon and defeated them in both games, 3-2 and 6-5. Cohen successfully won the first game from the circle, allowing six hits and two earned runs in seven innings; Cohen struck out 10, one shy of her career best, and walked just one. 82 of Cohen’s 113 pitches were strikes as she improved to 7-2 on the campaign.
In game one, the Judges earned an early 2-0 lead off of Kolb’s double to center field for her first two career RBIs. After Framingham got on the board, Cohen answered by sending the first pitch she saw to center field for her third home run of the season and fifth of her career. The Judges secured the win.
Game two was a competitive and exhilarating game, as the game-winning rally came in the sixth inning. Felder singled to right and Rothenberg doubled to put two runners in scoring position. Cohen then followed with a single to left that successfully plated Felder and Rothenberg scored when the ball was booted. On a wild pitch from the Rams, Cohen advanced to third and scored on Hash’s single to left. Relief pitcher Chandra Penton ’23 effectively closed out the game.
Penton earned the win with 3.2 innings of three-hit relief; she walked one and struck out a career-high eight to improve to 3-0 on the campaign. Offensively, each of the four hitters in the Brandeis lineup had two hits in game two. Cohen finished the game going 4-7 with three RBIs and two runs scored, a double and a home run.
The Judge’s return to action this weekend, April 9 to 10, in Pittsburgh with a four-game UAA series at Carnegie Mellon.
