The Hamilton College softball team opened a weekend NESCAC West Division series against Amherst College Friday, losing 10-2.

The series – which concludes with a Saturday doubleheader at noon – was originally scheduled to be played at Hamilton's Ferguson Field but was moved to Amherst because of field and weather conditions. The Continentals remain the home team for all three games.

Amherst blew open a close game with six runs in the top of the seventh inning. The Continentals (8-9, 1-1 NESCAC West) had trailed 4-1 since the bottom of the third before Amherst's late outburst.

After Amherst (12-4, 3-0) scored four times in the top of the third, Hamilton got on the scoreboard in the bottom of the inning. A two-out triple by Liz Brautigam '19 scored Jodi Weiss '19 to pull the Continentals to within three runs.

Brautigam and Ashleah Yzaguirre '19 both had two of Hamilton's six hits.

Hamilton scored an unearned run in the seventh when Yzaguirre singled home Caroline Chivily '19, who'd reached base on a one-out infield error.

Amherst's offense was led by Annie Murphy, whose three-run home run highlighted the four-run third. Murphy hit a sacrifice fly in the six-run seventh and a batter later Annie Apffel doubled home a pair of runs.

Apffel and Brianna Cook had two hits apiece. Jackie Buechler earned the win – her first of the season – by scattering five hits over six innings. She fanned six batters and didn't issue a walk.