Top-Seeded Lesley University Uses Four-Run Third To Get By No. 2 Softball, 4-1

Box Score

BOSTON, Mass. – Elms College senior right fielder Alison McBride (East Providence, R.I.) collected two of the second-seeded Blazers' five hits, but No. 1 Lesley University's Nicole Mercurio (Wakefield, Mass.) pounded out a two-run double to cap a four-run third frame for the Lynx to help spark Lesley to a 4-1 victory in Friday afternoon's New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) Championship tournament semifinal softball contest at Clark Field on the campus of UMass-Boston.

With the loss, Elms moves to 21-13 on the season and will play an elimination game against No. 3 Mitchell College (15-18 overall) at 10:00 a.m. Tournament host Lesley punched its ticket to Saturday's championship game at 12:00 p.m. and will play the winner of tomorrow's first matchup.

After a scoreless first inning of play, Elms' freshman first baseman Allyson Witaszek (Feeding Hills, Mass.) reached safely on a two-out error by Lesley and advanced to third on back-to-back base hits by junior left fielder Marlene DiRaimo (Cranston, R.I.) and sophomore center fielder Leah Spring (South Hadley, Mass.) before Lynx starting pitcher Cassandra Knox (Sea Cliff, N.Y.) retired the next batter looking to get out of the bases-loaded jam.

Lesley encountered its first scoring opportunity in the bottom of the third and struck for four runs when Jenna Fralick (Woburn, Mass.) singled to lead off the stanza, advanced to second on a groundout for the second out of the inning, and then scored on an RBI double to left center by Molly Sarson (Sanford, Maine) to give the Lynx a 1-0 lead. Alyson Durben (Stow, Mass.) drove Sarson home on a run-scoring single to center and then moved to second on a base hit by Jennifer Dorval (Franklin, N.H.) before a two-run double off the bat of Mercurio extended the Lynx lead to 4-0. Blazers' junior hurler Courtney Hampton (Westfield, Mass.) induced an inning-ending fly out to halt the rally.

Elms responded in the top of the fourth frame when sophomore catcher Sarah Buckley (Wilbraham, Mass.) drew a leadoff walk and sophomore second baseman Alexandra Bonavita (Agawam, Mass.) hustled out an infield single to give the Blazers two on with no outs. An illegal pitch advanced the runners up 60 feet before a wild pitch allowed Buckley to race home with Elms' first tally of the contest. From there, Knox-Lesley's starting pitcher-was lifted in favor of Dorval who retired the next three batters all by way of strikeout to preserve a 4-1 cushion.

Elms was limited to just one hit in its final three at bats, while Lesley managed just two hits as neither side advanced a runner past second base for the remainder of the game as the Lynx held on for a 4-1 victory.

Dorval tossed the final four innings and fanned seven batters en route to her 15^th win of the season (15-2), while Hampton pitched six innings for Elms and suffered the loss to move to 9-7 overall.

Sarson led Lesley's offense with a 3 for 3 day at the dish with an RBI and a run scored, while Mercurio delivered two RBI on a double.