The Binghamton softball team fell, 8-0, to Fordham on Saturday — eliminating the Bearcats (24-21, 10-6 America East) from the NCAA Tournament and ending their season.

“I think we were disappointed with the way that we played,” said BU head coach Michelle Burrell. “I think the girls know that they went down there and did not play their best ball. I think the only thing that we can do now is use it as a learning experience.”

BU’s loss came on the heels of its opening round defeat to the host, 15th-seeded James Madison (48-10, 19-0 Colonial Athletic), on Friday. The Bearcats hung tight with the Dukes through the first three innings of the contest. BU freshman pitcher Sarah Miller allowed just three hits and a single run — off of a steal of home plate — over that time frame.

The score remained 1-0 heading into the top of the fourth when, after an hour and 24 minute rain delay, Bearcat junior catcher Lisa Cadogan blasted a home run to tie the contest, 1-1. Binghamton soon fell apart in the fourth and fifth; the Dukes plated eight runs over the next two innings to end the game with a 9-1 mercy rule victory.

“I just think once one thing didn’t go our way, we just didn’t respond the way we needed to,” Burrell said. “I think we just kind of let the pressure of being where we were, at the NCAAs, kind of get to us a little bit and we didn’t play as relaxed and we also didn’t play a whole seven innings like we did all year long.”

BU faced Fordham for the second time this season in the following day’s elimination contest. In the first meeting between the two teams on March 13, the Rams narrowly defeated the Bearcats, 6-4. This time around, Fordham widened the margin, collecting an 8-0 shutout.

Rams redshirt junior pitcher Rachel Gillen stifled the Bearcats’ offense, allowing no runs and just two hits — a leadoff double by BU junior outfielder Sydney Harbaugh in the first and a single in the top of the fifth by junior first baseman Taylor Chaffee — over five innings. Fordham’s offense added two runs in the bottom of the first and never looked back, plating two more in the third and another four in the fourth to end the game on top, 8-0, after five, ending the Bearcats’ season.

“We didn’t make some plays that we needed to,” Burrell said. “I think that when we are playing the games and teams that we are you have to try and limit mistakes, and we just made too many mistakes.”

BU will now look forward to next season, when it will lose just one player to graduation — senior shortstop Caytlin Friis. The Bearcats are set to return 10 position players who started 15 or more games this season and four pitchers who saw time on the mound as they look to defend their America East title.

“I think we kind of felt the pressure a little bit,” Burrell said about her team’s play at the NCAA Tournament. “Hopefully next time we get there we’re going with some experience and hopefully it will be girls on this team that will be able to experience that again.”