NORTON, Mass. – The Wheaton College (Mass.) softball team was defeated by visiting United States Coast Guard Academy, 11-1, in the first game of a New England Women's & Men's Athletic Conference doubleheader this afternoon at the Clark Softball Field on the Wheaton campus in Norton, Mass.

The Lyons fall to 22-13 overall and 8-7 in league play, while the Bears improve to 27-8 and 11-4.

Coast Guard scored eight runs in the fourth and fifth innings, combined, to end the contest after five innings due to the eight-run mercy rule.

Sophomore left fielder Juliette Zito (Woodbridge, Conn.) led the Wheaton offense with a 2-2 day, while first year relief pitcher Ashlyn Burt (Olathe, Kan.) was 1-1 with a run batted in. Junior starting pitcher Sofia Knopf (Norton, Mass.) suffered the loss to drop to 10-6 on the year after allowing seven runs (six earned) on seven hits and a walk in three innings pitched.

Junior third base Julia Breidenthal (Leawood, Kan.) paced the Bears, driving in three runs after going 2-4 with a double and a run scored. First year right fielder Maura Murphy (Bristow, Va.) registered two runs batted in and was 3-3 with a double and two runs scored, while junior center fielder Christine Carey (San Diego, Calif.) and junior catcher Lillia Farlow (Carrollton, Texas) each doubled and knocked in a pair of runs apiece. Carey also scored twice and Farlow drew a walk. Sophomore left fielder Natalie Beck (Billings, Mont.) finished with three hits, including a double in four at-bats and scored three runs to go with an RBI. First year starting pitcher Dana Walker (Macon, Ga.) raised her record to 14-4 after hurling five innings of one-run ball on three hits and a walk to go with four strikeouts. Despite giving up three hits and a walk, Walker faced the minimum of 12 batters through her first four innings of work. 

Coast Guard quickly broke into the scoring column when Beck led off the game with a single to left field and came around to score on a one-out double to right center off the bat of Breidenthal to give the visitors a 1-0 edge.

The Bears used the double again to produce two more runs in the top of the second to increase their lead to 3-0. Junior Isabelle Shroyer (Marysville, Ohio) drew a one-out walk, Becker singled through the right side and Murphy roped a double to left field to plate Shroyer and Becker to give Coast Guard a three-run lead.

The Bears broke the game open with a five run fourth to expand their advantage to 8-0. Coast Guard took advantage of a pair of Lyon errors combined with a two-run double from Farlow as part of its big inning. 

The Bears began the fifth inning with four straight hits, including a pair of doubles to fuel a three-run frame to give them an 11-0 cushion. Murphy laced a single to left field to open the inning and scored ahead of a Beck double to left center. Carey traded places with Beck after smacking a double of her own to center to deliver Coast Guard's 10th run of the contest and give it five doubles in the game. Breidenthal followed with a run-scoring single to center to cap the visitors' scoring at 11 runs.

Wheaton scored its only run of the game in the bottom of the fifth when junior catcher Jill Ceddia (Hopkinton, Mass.) worked a one-out walk, advanced to second on a wild pitch and scored ahead of a Burt single through the left side to cut the deficit to 11-1.