MIDDLETOWN, Conn. – The Wesleyan softball team suffered a pair of defeats at the hands of No. 15 ranked Tufts in a doubleheader on Saturday afternoon. The Cardinals lost to the Jumbos 7-0 in game one and 7-1 in game two. Wesleyan drops to 11-15 (2-8 NESCAC) while Tufts (26-5, 12-2 NESCAC) sit atop the league standings.
 
After Tufts plated one run in the 3^rd inning of game one, two errors in the 4^th proved costly for the Cardinals as the Jumbos plated five runs in the half inning, all of which were unearned. Wesleyan's best chance came in the bottom of the 4^th as Jordynn Killion '27 singled to center and Molly Lennon '26 reached on an error with one out, but the Cardinals left both runners stranded.
 
The Jumbos added another run in the 5^th inning to account for the 7-0 final score.
 
In just her second outing over the last month, Ella DeCrescenzo '27 threw well, going 3.1 innings with just three hits and one run allowed. Isabella Secaira-Cotto '25 took the loss, throwing 3.2 innings with no walks and two strikeouts, allowing six runs but just one was earned.
 
Tufts struck early and often in game two, hitting two home runs in the first three innings to build a 3-0 lead heading into the bottom of the 3^rd where Wesleyan recorded three straight singles to load the bases with one out. Runner interference disallowed a run that had scored on the next at-bat and with the bases still loaded, Killion flied out to center to end the inning.
 
The Jumbos plated two runs in both the 4^th and 7^th innings, making it a 7-0 game, until the Cardinals scored in the bottom of the 7^th. Hannah Docktor '24 doubled to right, followed by a Nicole Celi '27 single to center, and Revi Brown '23 came up with the RBI single to center to make it 7-1.
 
Brown went four innings in relief, allowing just two runs. Seven Cardinals recorded hits in game two.
 
Wesleyan looks to rebound on Sunday with a home doubleheader against Colby starting at Noon. These will be the final home games of the 2024 season played in Middletown for the Cardinals.