STANDISH, Maine – Saint Joseph's College (14-4, 6-2 GNAC) rallied from early deficits with wins in both ends of a GNAC softball doubleheader versus Lasell College (5-13, 2-6 GNAC) at Richard W. Bailey Field on Monday afternoon. The Monks defeated the Lasers by a 6-3 margin in the opener and completed the sweep with an 11-5 nightcap triumph.
GAME ONE
Lasell grabbed the first lead of the day with three runs off four hits and a Saint Joseph's error in the top of the second. With the bases loaded, senior Michaela Grady (Worcester, Mass.) plated a pair with a single to right field. Freshman Ashley Gatchell (Franklin, Mass.), who reached on a single up the middle, advanced to third on Grady's base hit and raced home on a wild pitch unleashed by SJC sophomore starter Kylie McFadden (Dover, N.H.), making it a 3-0 game.
As it played out, the Lasers did not score again in the opener, as McFadden settled in and allowed just four hits over the following four frames. In the meantime, the Monks scored six unanswered runs, including four off two hits and a pair of Lasell miscues in the fourth, en route to the 6-3 triumph.
In the fourth, junior Megen Pollini (Wolfeboro, N.H.) put the Monks on the board with what would have been a sac fly to center, but the ball was dropped, allowing junior first baseman Melissa Mayhew (Hiram, Maine) to score from third. With the bases loaded and two out, senior right fielder Victoria Ramos (North Scituate, R.I.) sent freshman pinch runner Emilie Duggan (Newfield, Maine) across the plate with an infield single and Pollini and sophomore shortstop Mariah Harrison (Buxton, Maine) also scored when Lasell pitcher Eileen Bergin (Arlington, Mass.) made an error during the play.
Leading 4-3, senior third baseman Kim Jordan (Bangor, Maine) led off the bottom of the fifth with a no-doubt home run over the left field fence and Harrison plated Pollini, who reached with a double to right, with a sac fly to right, accounting for the 6-3 final.
McFadden improved to 4-0 on the season after yielding three runs off eight hits and three walks with five K's over six innings and senior Theresa Hendrix (Scarborough, Maine/Cheverus) collected her second save of the year after fanning a pair in a perfect inning of relief. With just four hits, the Monks did not feature a repeat-hitter in the opener.
For the Lasers, second baseman Erin Smith (Gorham, Maine) and designated player Mickayla Cobb (Middleboro, Mass.) both went 2-3 with a run scored in the losing effort. Bergin falls to 3-7 after giving up six runs (two earned) off four hits and two walks with three strikeouts over six frames.
GAME TWO
The closing contest was eerily similar to the first in the early going, as Lasell posted three runs in the first and added another in the second to claim a 4-1 advantage. The similarities continued, as plated seven unanswered runs during the fifth and sixth innings combined to earn their second come-from-behind victory in as many games.
In the first inning, Gatchell came up with the big hit again, as the freshman right fielder cleared the table with a bases-loaded double to lift her team to an early 3-0 cushion with two out in the opening frame.
St. Joe's responded with a run in the first, when Jordan opened with a double to left and eventually scored on a passed ball. The Lasers countered with a run of their own in the top of the second, when Smith singled and scored on a Nicole LeBlanc (Easton, Mass.) two bagger, making it a 4-1 contest through two innings.
The Monks continued to put on good at bats and the effort paid off in the fourth, when the hosts tied the game with three runs off four hits and two Lasell errors. Harrison reached on an outfield error to lead off the inning and was removed in favor of sophomore pinch runner Casidee Couture (Jay, Maine), who scored when freshman catcher Alyssah Dennett (Augusta, Maine) roped a double to the base of the left field wall. Ramos, who singled to left, eventually scored on an infield error and Mayhew plated Dennett with a single through the left side to tie the game at 4-4.
The Lasers regained the lead, albeit momentarily, in the fifth when LeBlanc singled to right and later scored on a Laura MacLeod (Old Saybrook, Conn.) sac fly.
Saint Joseph's secured the lead for good with two runs off three hits in the bottom of the fifth. Pollini led off the inning with a single to left-center, promptly moved to third when the following batter, Harrison, lifted a double to left field, and scored on an Alyssa Wade (Peru, Maine) single. Harrison crossed home plate when Jordan drove a deep sac fly to center, making it a 6-5 game through five frames.
The Monks blew the doors off with five runs off five hits in their next turn at the bat. Hendrix led off the inning with a walk and trotted home when sophomore catcher Jennifer Murphy (Andover, Mass.) belted her first career home run, an opposite field shot over the left field wall. Pollini singled and scored on a passed ball and Harrison doubled and crossed the plate on a Wade base hit, extending the Monks' cushion to 10-5. Freshman Allie Pike (Buxton, Maine) followed with her first collegiate hit – a single to third - and was replaced on the bases by Ramos, who eventually scored the game's final run on a Kelsy Gaddy (Limington, Maine) sac fly.
For the Monks, Harrison went 2-4 with two runs and a pair of doubles, Pollini was 2-4 with two runs, Ramos scored twice, Wade was 2-2 with two RBI, and Mayhew went 2-5 with an RBI. Sophomore starting pitcher Danielle Egan (Waterboro, Maine) improved to 2-1 on the year after giving up five runs on 11 hits and two walks with five strikeouts in a complete-game effort.
For the Lasers, LeBlanc went 3-4 with two runs, a double and an RBI, Emily DeAngelis (Shelton, Conn.) added three hits and a run in four at bats, and Gatchell was 2-4 with a double and three RBI in the losing effort. Starting pitcher Magdalene Trainor did not factor into the decision after allowing four runs (two earned) off seven hits and four walks in four innings. Freshman hurler Andrea Kane (Burlington, Mass.) took the loss and surrendered seven runs (six earned) off eight hits and two walks in two innings of work.
With the sweep, Saint Joseph's improves to 16-4 all-time versus Lasell College and has now defeated the Lasers in 15 consecutive meetings dating back to the 2008 campaign.
Both teams are scheduled to return to action tomorrow afternoon, when Saint Joseph's hosts GNAC-rival Simmons College in a doubleheader slated to begin at 4:30 PM and Lasell hosts Bridgewater State University in a non-conference twinbill set to start at 3:00 PM.
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Saint Joseph's College is Maine's only Catholic liberal arts college, providing a supportive, personalized and career-focused education for more than 100 years. From its 474-acre campus on the shores of Sebago Lake, the College offers more than 40 undergraduate programs to a population of approximately 1,000 students. Saint Joseph's College Online provides certificates, undergraduate and advanced degrees for working adults through an online learning program. For more, visit www.sjcme.edu.
