As Dana Yorks ’07 walked toward the batter’s box, she knew that her at-bat had the chance to make history in an east coast rivalry. The Wesleyan softball team was in Orange, California playing a Tufts squad that it had not defeated in 11 years, and the score was tied 2-2 in the top of the sixth inning. The bases were loaded for Yorks, and she knew that a walk or base hit could put the Cardinals over the Jumbos for the first time in over a decade.

Yorks hit a grand slam, breaking the game open and giving the Cardinals a 6-2 advantage and propelling the Cards to victory. Still, the Jumbos were able to put pressure on the Cardinals only half an inning after Yorks’ grand slam.
In the bottom of the sixth inning, the Jumbos loaded the bases and threatened to cut into the four-run Cardinal lead. With two outs and the game on the line, the Cardinals turned to Molly Gaebe ’07, career strikeouts record-holder, to end the inning. Gaebe certainly did not disappoint, as she forced the third out of the sixth inning. She then proceeded to pitch a 1-2-3 seventh inning to preserve the Cardinal victory and earn the save on the game.

Any game decided by these circumstances would have been important for the Cardinals, but this game had the added bonus of ending a decade-long streak of dominance by the Jumbos. “Beating Tufts…was a great accomplishment,” said tri-captain Sarah Gilloly ’06.

The Tufts game was part of the Sun West Tournament, held in Orange, California, where the Cardinals competed over spring break. Although the Cardinals lost 10 of 14 games they played in the weeklong competition, including a rematch with the Jumbos, Gillooly said that playing in the tournament, and the trip as a whole, was an amazing experience that brought the team together“

A final highlight of the trip, in addition to the victory over Tufts and the Southern California weather, was the opportunity to play the defending Division III national champions, the University of Saint Thomas (MN) Tommies. Although the Cardinals were not able to get a player on base in the five-inning game, Gillooly said the team considered the game a very good learning experience.

When the Cardinals returned to the Northeast, they were faced with an important doubleheader with one of their NESCAC West and Little Three rivals, the Amherst Lord Jeffs. These games did not go as well as the Tufts game, but the Cardinals did make the Lord Jeffs (9-4) struggle for their victory in the second game.

After being limited to two hits by Amherst pitcher Miya Warner ’06 in the first game, the Cardinals were much more effective at the plate in the second contest, as they scored five runs in the third inning. After five innings the Cardinals were up 6-5, but a three run sixth inning for the Lord Jeffs, combined with two more shutout innings by Warner, allowed Amherst to come out victorious.

”We played well against Amherst, but just didn’t get the necessary breaks to win,“ Russo said.
”We’re a young team with only freshmen and sophomores in the infield and as we continue to play we gain experience and learn each other.“

Upcoming games are a home game against the U.S. Coast Guard Academy on Wednesday and a home-and-away weekend series with Williams on Saturday.