CLERMONT, Fla. — The Middlebury College softball team built a big lead and then had to shut down a Lawrence University comeback to preserve an 11-7 nonconference victory on Monday at the National Training Center.
The Panthers built an 11-2 edge with the help of a five-run fourth inning, but Lawrence (2-3) struck for five runs in the bottom of the seventh before Middlebury escaped the jam.
Sarah Freyre went 3-for-4, scored two runs and drove in five to pace Middlebury.
Amanda Jaskolski went 2-for-4 and drove in a pair of runs, and Taylor Dodson also had two RBIs for the Vikings.
Lawrence put together its five-run rally in the seventh with just three hits, but the Vikings got some help with two Middlebury errors and a hit batsman. Dodson had a two-run single in the inning, and Rheya Upadhyaya also picked up a run-scoring single.