The Eagles struck early in the first behind strong small ball play, thanks to a sacrifice fly from catcher Hannah Slike and a single up the middle from second baseman Emma Jackson that scored shortstop Gator Robinson after her leadoff walk.
In a tight battle between the two, Boston College Softball (10–5) bested the San Jose State Spartans (9–12) to push its win streak to five games.
BC starting pitcher Kelly Colleran, though, found herself in trouble early in her outing, as strategic bunting and aggressive baserunning from the Spartans knotted the game at one.
Colleran’s day would end shortly after, as command issues led her to issue three consecutive walks, bringing rookie pitcher Bailey Kendziorski into the game. Kendziorski would limit the damage, escaping the inning by way of the strikeout.
San Jose State starting pitcher Lacie Ham pitched a strong top of the second inning to limit BC’s offense, sending the Eagles down 1–2–3 through a strikeout, a popout, and a groundout.
Kendziorski, though giving up a leadoff single, stayed composed in the circle and pitched a similarly efficient inning in the bottom of the second to keep the game tied.
To open the third, Kali Case beat out a throw at first to earn the Eagles’ second hit and third base runner of the game. Case, after advancing on a sacrifice hit from Gator Robinson, capitalized on a San Jose State error at third to reach home plate, reclaiming the lead for BC. However, strong pitching from SJSU limited any further damage.
The Spartans would waste no time at the plate in the bottom of the third. Quickly, they found themselves with runners at the corners of two singles and with only one out.
And while it appeared that the Eagles would escape unscathed, a throwing error from Gator Robinson allowed the runner on third to score, tying the game at two.
A strikeout by Kendziorski and an impressive defensive play at third by Janis Espinoza, though, kept the game even heading into the fourth.
San Jose State pitcher Lacie Ham got right back to work in the top of the fourth inning, once again sending the Eagles down in order via three consecutive pop-outs.
Following an intense nine-pitch battle at the plate, SJSU third baseman Taylor Chillingworth sent a towering shot to the outfield wall, allowing her to reach third on a stand-up triple. A sacrifice fly deep into the outfield enabled Chillingworth to score, giving the Spartans their first lead of the game.
BC’s defense, though, again limited the damage, sending the game into the fifth inning with a one-run deficit.
Lacie Ham would not relent, however, sitting the Eagles down for the third time in the game and allowing no base runners for the eighth consecutive at-bat.
Kendziorski answered with a 1–2–3 inning of her own in the bottom of the fifth, keeping BC competitive in this closely contested matchup.
The Eagles, desperate for an answer on offense, finally figured out pitcher Lacie Ham after a single from Slike got BC their first base runner since the third inning, knocking Ham out of the game.
Boston College’s offense awoke at just the right time, as a line drive single into right field from Stephens scored Slike to tie the game and a well-placed bunt from pinch-hitter Makenna Segal gave the Eagles a 4–3 lead.
The Spartan collapse continued as defensive miscommunication in the outfield allowed an Abby Ptak popup to drop, earning her first collegiate hit and pushing BC’s lead to two runs.
Heading into the bottom of the sixth, Kendziorski would need to fend off a San Jose State offense looking for a strong response to the Eagle’s offensive explosion.
BC got exactly what they needed, as though Kendziorski would allow two baserunners off of singles, no runners crossed home and the lead remained at two.
The Eagles’ bats went quiet again in the top of the seventh, getting only one baserunner via a Gator Robinson walk, meaning Kendziorski found herself quickly back in the circle to close out the win for BC.
San Jose State, expectedly, came out aggressively early, swinging at virtually every pitch thrown at them. Though just as quickly as they swung, Kendziorski was just as quick to get them out, allowing only one baserunner and sealing the win for the Eagles.
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