Softball Takes Two From Lesley in NECC Doubleheader
Game 1
Game 1
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | R | H | E | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Elms | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 7 | 0 |
|
Lesley | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 0 |
Game 2
Game 2
| Final (12) | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | R | H | E | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Elms | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 12 | 17 | 1 |
|
Lesley | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 10 | 5 |
Chris Kendrick (@CKendrick86)
BOSTON, Mass. – The Elms College softball squad wrapped up the regular season on the right note, sweeping host Lesley University in a New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) doubleheader Saturday evening at Buckingham Field. Play was halted in during extra innings of game two, and was completed Sunday morning. The Blazers posted a 5-1 win in game one, and outlasted the Lynx, 12-9, in extra innings in the nightcap.
With the sweep, Elms improves to 16-12 overall, and 15-3 in NECC play, while Lesley drops to 13-16, and 10-6 on the season.
The Blazers came out of the gates hot as junior Kierstan Skinner (South Windsor, Conn.) ripped a leadoff ground-rule double down the left field line. Sophomore Kacey Gifford (Suffield, Conn.) drew a walk, and then senior Bethany Grimes (Terryville, Conn.) delivered an RBI double to centerfield, staking Elms to a 1-0 lead. Freshman Elizabeth Olszewski (Canterbury, Conn.) cleared the bases in the following at bat, launching a three-run home run over the left-centerfield wall, extending the Blazers advantage to 4-0.
After three scoreless innings, the Blazers added an insurance run in the top of the fifth as Gifford blasted a solo home run to right-centerfield. The Lynx cracked the scoreboard in the bottom of the frame on an RBI single from sophomore Alyson Nisbet (Clovis, Calif.), but Grimes held the Lynx to three hits in the final two innings, securing the 5-1 victory in game one.
Grimes (8-7) registered her 12th complete game of the season, scattering one run on six hits with 12 strikeouts. Nisbet (4-7) took the loss, allowing five runs on seven hits with nine strikeouts. Skinner led the Blazers from the plate with a game-high three hits, while Gifford added a pair of hits and Olszewski drove in three runs.
The Lynx bounced back in the nightcap, opening the game with a two-run home run from sophomore Mekenzi Golden (Laguna Nigel, Calif.) in the bottom of the first, to give Lesley a 2-0 lead. After five scoreless innings, the Blazers evened the score in the top of the seventh when Grimes laced a two-run bases loaded double into the left-centerfield gap, knotting the game at 2-2. The game went to extra innings tied at 2-2.
In the top of eighth, Elms broke the tie with a two-run single from Skinner, plating seniors Jennifer Bouvier (Mashpee, Mass.) and Elizabeth Patient (Leicester, Mass.), to give the Blazers a 4-2 lead. Grimes With two outs, Grimes poked a two-run single to left-centerfield, extending the Elms advantage to 6-2. The Lynx rallied in the bottom of the frame, as freshman Theresa Pereira (Hopedale, Mass.) knocked an RBI single to right field, followed by two-out RBI single from sophomore Carlyn Barker (Temecula, Calif./Linfield). Lesley tied the game at 6-6 on a two-run single by freshman Courtney Goggin (Cheshire, Conn.) to centerfield.
After a scoreless ninth inning, Elms regained control in the tenth behind two-out RBI singles from Grimes and senior Gina DiGiovanni (Springfield, Mass.) to take an 8-6 lead. The Lynx mounted a comeback in the bottom of the inning with a two-run single to centerfield from graduate Allison Fountain (Cheshire, Conn.) tying the score at 8-8. The Blazers grabbed a 9-8 lead in the 11th when senior Alyson Santerre (Thompson, Conn.) raced home after the ball was misplayed at first on a hit from senior Jessica Colson (Agawam, Mass.). Again, the Lynx knotted the score when freshman Kelsy Lynch (Rumford, R.I.) brought home freshman Jillian Sbardella (Dartmouth, Mass.) on an RBI groundout to second base, making it a 9-9 game.
In the 12th, the Blazers pulled ahead as Skinner scored on a throwing error on a hit to third base by Gifford, and then Grimes put Elms up 12-9 with a two-run home run over the left field fence. Play was halted in the top of the 13th inning, but the Blazers closed out the win when play resumed Sunday morning.
The sweep wraps up regular season play for the Blazers. Lesley will host Becker College in an NECC doubleheader Sunday afternoon. First pitch is at 12:00 p.m. Elms has qualified for the NECC tournament and will wait for seeding to be announced.
ELMS SOFTBALL
