After losses in the first two games of a four-game weekend series, outlooks were bleak for Boston College softball. Even so, the ever-resilient Eagles showed promising signs of hope early in the game but got overwhelmed in extra innings, falling to Clemson 4-3 on a walk-off error.
The Eagles’ (8-25, 4-17 Atlantic Coast) first lead over Clemson (31-4, 21-4) of the weekend came in the top of the third inning. AJ Alatorre started off the inning strong with a line-drive double followed up by a line-drive single over the shortstop’s head from Elisabeth Laviolette. Alatorre reached home thanks to Laviolette, making the score 1-0.
It didn’t last long, however, as the Eagles quickly lost their lead on an error in the bottom of the third, knotting the score at 1-1.
BC’s Maddy Carpe came firing back in the fourth to retake the Eagles’ lead. With two outs and her teammate Kristin Giery on third, Carpe rocketed a line drive over the shortstop’s head. Kristin reached home, making the score 2-1.
Ellie Mataya, the Eagles’ leadoff batter, crushed her first home run of the season in the fifth inning over the right-field wall, making the score 3-1. Mataya has been a key player for the Eagles this season. She holds the team’s highest batting average of .364 and leads the Eagles in runs scored with 13.
BC got aggressive in the sixth coming off Mataya’s momentum, but the Eagles couldn’t get anything going at the plate. Nicole Giery went home on a line drive to center, but the throw home beat her to the plate.
Clemson caught up to the Eagles in the sixth from a dropped fly ball by second baseman Erika Andal. With the momentum they gained from the error, the Tigers completed a successful suicide squeeze bunt at the plate, tying the game up at 3-3.
Under pressure with the game tied up and the bases loaded in the bottom of the sixth, Susannah Anderson came into the circle to relieve Peyton Schnackenberg. Anderson kept the Tigers off balance, as only two baserunners reached base, both of whom were hit by a pitch. Anderson kept the game tied 3-3 for three innings until the game ended on a field error.
Anderson and Schnackenberg ended the game with 71 cumulative strikes, allowing only seven hits the entire game.
In the bottom of the ninth inning, the Eagles’ infielders lost steam with three back-to-back errors, and the Tigers walked it off without an earned run. From a ground ball off of Alatorre’s arm, followed by a ground ball through Kristin’s legs, the Eagles faced runners on first and second.
Clemson’s McKenzie Clark dribbled a ground ball to BC shortstop, Nicole. Nicole attempted to go to third for the force out, but a bad throw went past Alatorre. The ball continued to roll, eventually into the Eagles’ dugout. Clemson’s base runner then advanced home because the ball stopped in dead ball territory, ending the game 4-3 in a walk-off victory for the Tigers.
BC and Clemson ended the game with seven hits each. The Eagles committed four errors total, which ultimately lost them the game. The Eagles have committed 44 errors total so far this season and sit at No. 13 in the ACC standings with three weeks left in the regular season.
Featured Image by Ikram Ali / Heights Editor
