STANDISH, ME – The St. Joe’s Softball team improved to 17-5 overall and 12-0 in GNAC play with a pair of victories against Johnson & Wales (3-17, 3-9 GNAC) on Saturday afternoon. The Monks extended their winning streak to 13 games with the conference sweep.
Saint Joseph’s second baseman Jillian Kimball ’10 (Albany Township, ME) enjoyed a fine day at the plate, as the senior captain went 5-8 with three runs, an RBI and a triple in the two-game set.
Christy Wezowicz ’10 (Granville, MA) tossed a gem in the opener, as the senior pitcher allowed just one earned run and five hits with 7 K’s and no walks in the complete game victory. She improves to 5-2 and has a 1.98 ERA with 34 strikeouts and just five walks in 42.1 innings this season.
Freshman pitcher Kayla Vannah (Waldoboro, ME) allowed four earned runs and seven hits over six innings in the nightcap to earn her first collegiate victory. Madylan Kluna ’12 (Standish, ME) tossed a scoreless seventh to earn her second save of her sophomore campaign.
For Head Coach Jamie Smyth ‘92, in his 13th season as the SJC skipper, the 13-game winning streak is the longest of his esteemed career.
GAME ONE
Third baseman Cynthia Wescott ’12 (Westbrook, ME) plated Kimball, who reached with a two-out triple to right, in the second inning to open the game scoring. The Monks went on to add a run in the third when center fielder Anna Willis ’10 (Gorham, ME) scored on an Emily Leverone ’12 (Hampton, NH) sac fly to center.
In the fifth, pinch runner Caitlin Schrum ’12 (Littleton, NH) scored on a wild pitch and Kimball crossed the plate when catcher Natasha Howard ’11 (Farmington, ME) singled to left field to put the Royal Blue ahead 4-0.
JWU managed to score twice off three hits in the top of the sixth to make it a 4-2 contest, as catcher Lauren Lomonaco ’12 (Southampton, NJ) singled home a pair with one out for the Wildcats.
The Monks were able to put the game out of reach with three runs in the bottom of the sixth frame, capping the game scoring with the hosts ahead 7-2. Willis led off with a walk and scored on a base hit by right fielder Danyelle Shufelt ’13 (Sutton, VT). Leverone drove Shufelt home with a single to left and first baseman Alyssa Dunn ’11 (Standish, ME) missed a home run by inches, as a well-struck ball hit the top of the fence in center, but the junior slugger settled for an RBI double that scored Leverone and put the Monks ahead by the final score.
For the Monks, Shufelt was 2-4 with a run and a stolen base; Kimball went 2-4 with two runs and a three-bagger; and Howard was 2-3 with an RBI.
Starting pitcher Amanda Rae Sullivan ’11 (East Granby, CT) was hit with the loss for the Wildcats after allowing seven runs, four earned, off 11 hits and three walks in six innings.
GAME TWO
In the nightcap, Saint Joseph’s scored runs in the first and second innings to provide Vannah with a 2-0 cushion. In the opening frame, Shufelt doubled and was driven home by a Liddy van der Linden ’10 (Worcester, MA) two-base hit and catcher Ellen Neff ’11 (Chester, VT) doubled and scored on a single by Shufelt in the second inning.
The Wildcats got on the board with a run in the third to make it a 2-1 game, as second baseman Olivia England ’13 (Natick, MA) drove home center fielder Holliann Barry ’12 (Newburgh, NY) with an infield groundout.
Kimball and Neff both registered RBI’s in the third to increase the Monks’ cushion to three runs, 4-1, and the Royal Blue put up a crooked number, four runs, in the fifth to gain an 8-1 advantage. Third baseman Heather Tripp ’13 (Lovell, ME) belted a two-out, two-RBI double and Neff and Willis both notched run-scoring singles in the frame.
The fifth-inning production proved to be necessary, as the Wildcats responded in kind with a four-run performance of their own in the top of the sixth to cut the SJC lead to 8-5. The first four JWU batters reached, including Ashley Mata ’10 (Wheeling, IL), who punched a two-run single to left. Third baseman Ellis Kim ’13 (Glendale, CA) and starting pitcher Rachel Marino ’13 (Northbridge, MA) also notched RBI’s during the inning.
Leverone led off the bottom of the sixth with a single to center and eventually scored on a passed ball to put her team up 9-5. In the top of the seventh, after the JWU leadoff batter reached on an infield miscue, Vannah was replaced in the circle in favor of Kluna, who recorded a strikeout in an inning of scoreless relief.
For St. Joe’s, Kimball was 3-4 with a run and an RBI; Neff went 2-3 with two runs, two RBI and a double; Shufelt was 2-3 with a run, and RBI and a double; Leverone scored a run and was 2-4; and van der Linden doubled, scored a run, plated a run, and recorded two hits in four trips to the plate.
For JWU, Riviera and Lomonaco both went 2-3 with a run scored and Marino allowed 13 hits and five earned runs in six innings in the circle.
Saint Joseph’s will face off against Southern Maine on Tuesday in a non-league doubleheader scheduled to begin at 3:30 PM. Johnson & Wales will host St. Joseph (CT) on Tuesday in a GNAC twinbill slated to start at 3:00 PM.
