Thomas College

Bangor, Maine - Softball took on the #6 seed University of Maine Presque Isle in the first round of the 2026 North Atlantic Conference tournament on Thursday, May 7th. Despite trailing the Owls by four runs after three innings of play, a strong rally from the Terriers in the final innings propelled them to a thrilling 10-8 victory.

How it Happened:

• UMPI claimed the early momentum in the top of the first inning, plating three runs to take an important lead over the Terriers.
• The Terriers found a response immediately in the bottom half of the first inning, beginning with an RBI double from Maeve Hickok before Mackenzie Toner added an RBI single to center field to make it a 2-3 game.
• A sacrifice fly from Jennie Whitten just one at-bat later helped the Terriers even the score, knotting the game up at 3-3 after one inning of play.
• UMPI regained momentum of the game in the top of the second inning, completing an RBI single before adding a three-run home run in the top of the third inning to extend the Terrier deficit to four runs.
• The Terriers continued to battle in the bottom of the fourth inning, as Megan Oberholzer delivered a quality at-bat and cut into the deficit with an RBI double down the left-field line.
• Hickok took advantage of an Owls miscue in the following at-bat, driving in two additional runs off a fielding error to pull the Terriers within one at 6-7.
• UMPI added an additional run in the top of the fifth inning off an RBI double to extend its lead to two runs.
• But the Terriers found a response once again in the bottom of the fifth inning, with Leah Knight reaching home off an Owls fielding error to make it a one run game.
• The Terriers reclaimed momentum moments later, as Hickok drove in her third RBI of the game with a sacrifice fly, before Mackenzie Toner delivered the go-ahead RBI single up the middle to give Thomas its first lead of the afternoon at 9–8.
• A wild pitch by the Owls in the bottom of the sixth inning allowed Abby Farone to cross the plate, giving the Terriers an insurance run and extending the lead to 10–8.
• The Owls threatened to even the score late, but a strong outing from Terrier reliever Brooke Smith ultimately kept UMPI off the scoreboard in the sixth and seventh innings, as the Terriers went on to complete a thrilling 10–8 comeback victory in the opening round of the North Atlantic Conference Playoffs.

Inside the Stats:

• Mackenzie Toner - 4 Hits, 2 RBI
• Megan Oberholzer - 2 Hits, 1 RBI
• Jennie Whitten - 2 Hits, 1 RBI
• Maeve Hickok - 1 Hit, 3 RBI
• Abby Farone - 2 Hits
• Brooke Smith - 4.1 Innings Pitched, 5 Hits Allowed, 1 Earned Run, 9 Strikeouts

What's Next:

• With the win over the Owls, softball advances to take on the #1 seed (and 15th ranked nationally in D3) Husson University Eagles in the second round of the North Atlantic Conference Playoffs. First pitch is scheduled for 1:00 PM at Robert & Frances O'Keefe Softball Field.