By Kevin Mills,Staff Writer

AUBURN – Emily Goss didn’t have to be perfect Friday.

Still, the St. Dom’s hurler came pretty close to it and pitched her Saints to a 2-1 victory over previously unbeaten Buckfield.

Goss took a no-hitter into the seventh inning and settled for a one-hitter. She walked just one and struck out seven.

“She’s got the speed,” said Bucks coach Ted Dunn, filling in for Ken Farrington. “We haven’t faced that kind of speed other than (Richmond’s) Sarah (Coonradt). Even Emily is faster than her.”

The Bucks (3-1) only had one runner on base through the first six innings. Shayna Shackford drew a walk in the second. Otherwise, the Bucks went quietly until Tiffany Dunn broke up the no-hitter with a leadoff single in the seventh.

Losing the no-hitter didn’t phase the senior pitcher, but she didn’t like allowing the lead runner on with just a 2-0 lead.

“I was a little disappointed, but I knew it was one hit,” said Goss. “We had two runs. I knew we could get them.”

Goss had to be sharp because Bucks pitcher Desiree Brackett matched her pitch-for-pitch.

“She did an excellent job,” said Dunn. “There’s no doubt about that. Last year, this team beat us 13-0.”

Dunn gave up seven hits, but the Saints (5-0) had just six runners on through the first five innings. She struckout five and walked none.

“It made me think that I’ve got to do good,” said Goss. “I knew I needed to get it in there and get the strikeouts and keep the game moving. I had to keep them from getting on base.”

The Saints took the 2-0 lead thanks to errors in the fifth and sixth. Autumn Bell, beat out an infield hit and advanced on a Sam Morency sacrifice and a Laura Robitzek fielder’s choice. An Elisha Dorso grounder to short nearly ended the inning, but a high throw allowed the run to score.

In the sixth inning, Goss singled with one out. When pinch-runner Danielle Guerin stole second, the catcher’s throw hit the base and bounced into the outfield. Guerin advanced and scored when the ball was bobbled in the outfield.

Bell finished with three hits while Micaela Kelly had a pair.

“Autumn got on three times and Micaela got on twice,” said St. Dom’s coach Dan Samson. “So the kids that you might not expect to get on, they got on.”

Buckfield’s lone run came in the seventh. After Dunn singled, she stole second and took third on a fielder’s choice. She scored on a Shackford sacrifice fly.

“We had a couple of mental mistakes,” said Samson. “That girl should not have been at third and she should not have scored.”

Both pitchers got some solid defensive play as well. Shackford had a number of nice plays at first for the Bucks. Kelly made a nice running catch in left for the Saints.

“She made a great catch in the outfield,” said Samson. “All the practice that we did, and she did it. She did what she’s supposed to do.”