NESCAC Softball Player of the Week
Lauryn Horita – Tufts – Sr. – DP – San Mateo, Calif.
Horita had multiple hits in all four games and scored at least one run in each game for Tufts last week. The senior finished with a .625 batting average, going 10-for-16 at the plate with two doubles, seven runs scored, and three RBI in four games. In a sweep at Amherst on Saturday, Horita went 5-for-8 with four runs and an RBI. After Amherst tied Game 1 at 5-5 in the bottom of the seventh, Horita was part of a Jumbo rally in the eighth as she doubled and scored in an 8-5 extra-inning victory. Against Trinity on Sunday, she was 5-for-8 in the two games with three runs and two RBI. In Game 2, when Tufts broke it open with three runs in the fourth and two in the fifth, Horita had a single and a double, respectively, and scored in both frames.

NESCAC Softball Pitcher of the Week
Sophia Meade – Colby – So. – Guilford, Conn.
Meade made four appearances in the circle last week, collecting three wins and a save. The sophomore totaled 14.0 innings, allowing one earned run while striking out 15. Meade allowed one hit or less in three appearances, including Colby's 3-2 extra-inning win over No. 20 Husson. 

NESCAC Weekly Honor Roll
Bates – Junior Maya Lee (Wayland, Mass.) reached base at a .421 clip over the course of six games last week, including a win over No. 20 Husson, where she went 2-for-2 with two runs scored, three RBI, and a walk. Lee leads the Bobcats with 21 hits on the season … Claire Ballard (Windham, N.H.) allowed just one run over 6.1 innings pitched against Middlebury. The rookie scattered seven hits in a big bounce-back performance for the Bobcats in the circle.

Bowdoin – Junior Penelope Fong-Picariello (Yardley, Pa.) delivered an RBI single in extra innings to give the Polar Bears a 4-3 win at Middlebury on Saturday. She also had two RBI on Sunday as the Polar Bears gave Williams its first conference loss of the season. The weekend wins pushed Bowdoin past the 20-win plateau for the third straight season and the 16th time in the last 18 full seasons.

Colby – Victoria Ramirez (Ontario, Calif.) had a hit in all six games last week as the Mules went 5-1. The senior collected multi-hit games against No. 20 Husson and twice against Hamilton. Ramirez hit .529 (9-17) on the week with a .619 on-base percentage.

Hamilton – Kelsey Vadnais (Sunrise, Fla.) went 5-for-6 (.833) and handled 13 chances in the field without an error in a 2-2 week for the Continentals. Vadnais went 3-for-3 with a double and a run scored in an 8-4 win at SUNY Oneonta. The three-hit game was the first for the sophomore. Vadnais' sacrifice fly drove in the go-ahead run in the top of the eighth inning of a 5-4 victory in the opener against the Red Dragons. Vadnais added two singles and a walk in a 9-8 setback in Game 2 against Colby.

Middlebury – Jen Westphal (Westport, Conn.) went a combined 7-for-14 (.500) in a 3-1 NESCAC weekend. In the fourth inning of the second game against Bowdoin, the senior tallied a run-scoring single that sparked four runs and gave the Panthers the lead for good in a 4-2 victory. In the nightcap against Bates, Westphal went 3-for-4 with two RBI and two runs scored in a 7-3 win. Her base knock with one out in the third plated teammate Olivia Fleming and kick-started a three-run frame that gave Middlebury a lead it never relinquished. Westpahl leads the Panthers with 24 runs batted in … Emily Dowd (Fairfield, Conn.) went 2-0 in two appearances in the circle for the Panthers. In Game 2 against Bowdoin, the rookie went the distance, giving up five hits and one earned run as Middlebury posted a 4-2 victory. Coming in for relief against Bates, Dowd threw four innings of one-hit softball and five strikeouts to seal a 7-3 triumph in the nightcap. She is 9-0 and has a team-high six complete games.

Trinity – Katie Ruffer (Eastvale, Calif.) led the way at the dish for the Bantams in a 5-2 week, including a split with Tufts and a series sweep of Wesleyan. The first-year batted .458 (11-for-24) with two doubles, five runs scored, six runs batted in, and a stolen base. Ruffner went 2-for-3, including a game-tying RBI knock in the sixth, with two RBI in a 10-9 win over Nichols, followed by a 4-for-9 day with three runs scored, two RBI, a double, and a stolen base in a sweep of the Cardinals. Ruffer added a 4-for-9 performance with an RBI and a run scored in a split with the Jumbos … Kaysen Shikar (Watchung, N.J.) logged a trio of complete game efforts with a pair of victories in a 5-2 week for the Bantams. Against Nichols, Shikar scattered two runs on seven hits with six strikeouts, followed by a strong seven-inning victory with five strikeouts in a 9-3 win over Wesleyan. The senior collected a victory over Tufts, allowing five runs on 10 hits with three strikeouts.

Wesleyan – Molly Lennon (Litchfield, Conn.) hit .545 across four games with a .667 on-base percentage and 1.182 slugging percentage as the senior infielder recorded six hits, including two doubles, one triple, and one home run, seven runs scored, four RBI, and four walks. Lennon opened the week reaching base in three of four plate appearances in both ends of a Tuesday doubleheader sweep of Albertus Magnus, hitting two doubles with three walks, and four runs scored. She followed with a 2-for-3 showing with one triple, two runs, and one walk in Game 1 against Trinity, and she closed out the week by hitting an inside-the-park grand slam in Game 2 against the Bantams … Whitney Gigante (Tewksbury, Mass.) tossed 5.2 scoreless innings with seven strikeouts and three hits allowed in a win over Albertus Magnus on Tuesday. The sophomore followed with a complete game on Saturday against Trinity, allowing three earned runs with four strikeouts.

Williams – Sidney Miller (Miramar, Fla.) hit .417 (5-12), with two runs, one RBI, and one double, in a 3-1 NESCAC week for the Ephs. On Sunday, in a 3-2 win over Bowdoin in Game 1, the outfielder went 2-for-4 in the batter's box and drove in the game-winning RBI with a single in the seventh. The senior also went 2-of-4, with a run scored, in a 5-3 victory over visiting Bates in Game 1 of Saturday’s doubleheader … Sadie Leonard (Tiburon, Calif.) went 2-0 in the circle last week for the Ephs with two complete-game efforts. In a 2-1 Game 2 win over visiting Bates on Saturday, Leonard threw a two-hitter, gave up no earned runs, and struck out 12. Leonard also earned the victory in a 3-2 Game 1 win against Bowdoin Sunday, striking out 10 batters.