EAST BOSTON – Suffolk softball had walk-off potential with the bases loaded despite entering the bottom of the seventh inning down three. Lasell kept the game-winning run on the bags, however, to hand the Rams a 6-5 season-opening loss Tuesday afternoon at East Boston Memorial Park.  

THE BASICS
SCORE: Suffolk 5 | Lasell 6 
RECORDS: Suffolk (0-1) | Lasell (1-0)

HOW IT HAPPENED
Lasell wasted little time to get their bats going with three runs tacked on in the opening inning. With runners in the corners, two outs and 2-2 count, Bethany Hector barreled a bomb over the center field fence. That hit put the Rams in a three-run hole early.  

Suffolk made up ground in the home half of the innings. The first three blue-and-gold batters got on to put all the ducks in the pond. One out later, Leina Belog singled to right to plate Caitlin Murphy and Ally Cifaratta and slice the gap down to one, 3-2.  

A scoreless saw was followed by a two-run third for the Lasers. Now down three, Cifaratta sauntered up to lead off the bottom of the third. The sophomore sent a solo shot to center to trim the deficit back to a pair, 5-3.  

Both sides were kept quiet in the fourth before Suffolk found itself in dangerous territory. in the field of the fifth. Kennedy Reyes secured two outs on the first two batters. The Lasers had other things in mind though and a walk and a single to shallow right center kept the inning going. Jaclyn Davis visited the circle, retired Reyes for the day brought Belog in to take over. The reliever secured the last out of the frame to keep the two-run game going after 4.5 innings.   

Belong handled the rubber in the sixth and the beginning of the seventh. The sophomore sat down four of the first five hitters she faced. Lasell's line-up began to figure out the right-handed arm, however, and managed to extend their advantage to 6-3 as the game transitioned into the bottom of the seventh.  

Small ball and smart trips to the dish played off in Suffolk's favor as the host juiced the bases to set-up an entertaining home half of the seventh. An infield fly put the first out of the inning on the board before Savannah Scripter's single to center field cut the deficit to one, 6-5.  

Belog had two runners in scoring position and worked her at bat through a full count to load the bases with just one out. The walk-off comeback never came though as Suffolk's next two hitters were unable to produce. 

PITCHERS PICTURE

• Reyes suffered the setback. Suffolk's started allowed five runs, four earned, on four hits, five walks with a pair of Ks through 4.2 innings. 
• Belog let up one run on two hits and one walk in 2.1 frames. The relief arm struck out four of the 10 batters she faced. 
• Eryn Sheeley secured the victory for the Lasers with a complete-game, five-run-nine-hit, five-walk, eight-strikeout day. 

STATISTISCALLY SPEAKING

• Belong was responsible for one third of the Rams' nine hits. The shortstop went 3-for-3 with two RBI and walked once. 
• Cifaratta contributed two hits (2-3) including a jack with one RBI, one walk and scored twice. 
• Scripter provided two RBI on one hit. 
• Murphy scored twice, had one hit and one walk. 
• Bianca Luciano chipped in one hit and one run. 
• Ira Boci registered one hit.   

NOTEWORTHY

• The Rams lifted the lid on their season in Boston for the first time since 1994.
• Suffolk and Lasell met for the first time since April 18, 2019. 
• Cifaratta recorded her first collegiate homer. 
• Rebecca Gonzalez made her collegiate debut. 
• Boci notched her first collegiate hit in the first plate appearance of her collegiate career. 
• Belog pitched for the first time in a Suffolk jersey. 
• Scripter had a career-high two RBI. 
• Belog notched a personal-best in hits (3) and RBI (2).   

POST-GAME PIC
  

WHAT'S NEXT?
Suffolk concludes the doubleheader with Lasell under the lights in Eastie.