NORTON, Mass. -- First year right fielder Jillian Rohon (Southington, Conn.) hit a three-run homer to give the Wheaton College (Mass.) the deciding runs in a 9-6 victory over visiting Babson College this evening in game two of a New England Women's & Men's Athletic Conference doubleheader to gain a split at the Clark Softball Field on the Wheaton campus in Norton, Mass. The Lyons improve to 11-7 overall and 3-1 in league play, while the Beavers, who are ranked 24th nationally in the most recent National Fastpitch Coaches Association poll, see their eight-game win streak end as they fall to 15-5 and 3-1.

Wheaton scored three times in the fifth and tacked on another run in the sixth to overcome a 6-5 deficit and come away with the victory in game two. The win was the first for the Lyons over Babson since a twinbill sweep on April 2, 2017.

Rohon was 1-4 in the game with three runs batted in for Wheaton, while senior first base Tristan Keller (Plymouth, N.H.) was 3-4 with two runs batted in. Senior shortstop Katelyn Barton (Andover, N.H.) was 2-4 with a double, two RBI and a pair of runs scored and sophomore Lindsey Oliveira (Westport, Mass.) collected three of the Lyons' 14 hits for the game. Senior right-hander Emma Candelaria (Hampton Bays, N.Y.) went the distance for Wheaton giving up six runs (two earned) on eight hits and five walks, while striking out two in seven innings to up her record to 6-2.

Junior second base Lexi Morris (Lexington, Mass.) led the Beavers in game two, going 2-4 with two runs batted in, while first year Sara Moore (Kennett Square, Pa) was 2-3 with a double, a run driven in and a run scored. She finished the day with six hits. Senior right fielder Cara Harnick (Sammamish, Wash.) also contributed with two singles in four at-bats. Sophomore reliever Nicole Sestito (Sea Girt, N.J.) (1-1) suffered the loss, giving up four runs (three earned) on six hits.

The Lyons entered the bottom of the fifth trailing 6-5 when Barton beat out an infield single to shortstop and Oliveira singled up the middle to put runners on first and second with no outs. Rohon crushed the first pitch she saw over the center field fence for her second homer of the season and an 8-6 Wheaton lead. The Lyons tacked on an insurance run in the sixth when Oliveira laced a two-out single to center and later came around to score on a single to center off the bat of Keller.

Wheaton scored the first three runs of the game in the home half of the first, courtesy of a two-run double from Barton and a run-scoring single from Keller. 

Babson took the lead in third with four two-out runs. Moore singled through the right side, before  senior center fielder Audrey Labouliere (Pipersville, Pa.) followed with a single to left and advanced to second on the throw to put both runners in scoring position. Senior shortstop Isabel Aguilar (Avon, Conn.) reached on an infield single to drive in a run and cut the deficit to 3-1. Senior left fielder Abrianna Natoli (Fairfield, Conn.) reached on an error to score another run before Morris gave the Beavers the lead with a two-run single to left to make it 4-3.

Babson added another run in the fourth on a Moore sacrifice fly for a 5-3 margin, but the Lyons answered in the bottom of the frame with two runs to knot the contest at 5-5. Keller led off the frame with a single to right center and was lifted for senior pinch-runner Lilly Laganiere (Rochester, N.H.) on the bases. Sophomore catcher Jill Ceddia (Hopkinton, Mass.) was unable to get a bunt down, but redeemed herself by hitting the next pitch into the left center gap for a double to plate Laganiere. Sophomore third base Amanda Bogardus (Saco, Maine) followed with a clutch RBI single up the middle from the nine-hole to pull the home team even.

The Beavers took advantage of a pair of errors in the fifth and Natoli later scored the go-ahead run on a wild pitch to make it 6-5, before Rohon's big blast for the home team.

The Lyons return to play on Sunday, April 10 when they travel to Worcester, Mass. to take on Worcester Polytechnic Institute for a NEWMAC twinbill at 12:00 p.m., while Babson heads to Northampton, Mass. tomorrow for a noon doubleheader with conference foe Smith College.