WALTHAM, Mass. – The Brandeis University softball team pushed #17 Case Western Reserve to extra innings today, but the Spartans pulled away with six runs in the top of the eighth as they took an 8-3 victory in the series finale. Before the game, the Judges honored their five seniors playing their final home games.
TEAM RECORDS

• Brandeis: 8-26-1, 3-12 UAA.
• CWRU: 25-9, 11-4 UAA, ranked #17 in Division III by NFCA.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Case manufactured a run to open the scoring in the third inning. Natalie Durham led off with a bunt single and stole second. Durham moved to third on a grounder to short and scored when KaiLi Gross's grounder up the middle was deflected – the Judges got an out at first, but were unable to try to get the runner coming home.
• In the top of the fourth, the Spartans doubled their lead on a solo home run to lead off the inning.
• Brandeis didn't have a hit against CWRU's Lexi Miskey through the first three innings, but the Judges got to her in the fourth. With one out, sophomore 1B Brooke Boehmer (Pittsburgh, Pa./Mount Lebanon) drew a walk, and graduate student 3B Haley Nash (Delmar, N.Y./Bethlehem Central) followed with a deep home run to right field.
• The blast was Nash's third of the season and extended her career record to 33 in a Judges' uniform.
• The pitchers settled down, keeping the opposition scoreless through the next three innings.
• Brandeis had a golden opportunity to score in the sixth, when they loaded the bases with none out on a single, a hit batter and a walk. A trip to the circle by CWRU coach Josie Henry settled down Miskey, and she struck out the next three Brandeis batters, winning a nine-pitch battle with Nash for the first out of the inning.
• The Spartans put two runners on with two out against Brandeis junior Ragini Kannan (Westford, Mass./Westford Academy), but she left them in scoring position on a liner to third base.
• After an uneventful bottom of the seventh, CWRU blew things open in the eighth.
• With one out, a double, a single and a stolen base put two runners in scoring position, and Lacey Lara brought them home with a single to center.
• A hit batter, a bunt and a walk loaded the bases for Gross, and she lined the first pitch she saw out of the park to center for a grand slam the iced the game.
• Brandeis got a solo run in the bottom of the eighth on first-year Jordan Wallace's (Howell, N.J./Choate Rosemary Hall, Conn.) team-leading sixth home run of the season, but it wasn't enough.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Kannan threw her second extra-inning complete game of the season, but fell to 4-7. She allowed 10 hits and eight runs, striking out eight and walking four.
• Miskey threw seven innings of two-hit ball, allowing two earned runs. She struck out eight and walked two, with two hit batters. She is now 15-3 on the season.
• Two of Brandeis's three hits were for extra bases, with Nash and Wallace's home runs.
• Gross (5 RBI) and Lara (2 RBI) combined to drive in seven of the Spartans' eight runs.

SENIOR DAY

• Before the game, the Judges honored their five seniors making their final home appearances of the season
  • Infielder Ariel Schachter (Dallas, Texas/Plano West)
  • Utility player Fiona Doiron (Charlton, Mass./Marianapolis Prep)
  • Infielder Anna Kolb (Alexandria, Va./Thomas A. Edison)
  • Catcher Tristan Boyer (Chesapeake, Va./Grassfield)
  • Catcher Rani Balakrishna (Brookline, Mass./Windsor School)

UP NEXT

• The Judges will play two games at Tufts on Tuesday afternoon at 3 p.m. in non-conference action before wrapping up UAA play the weekend of May 9-10 at the University of Chicago.