NEW HAVEN, Conn. – Saint Joseph's College (21-15, 17-5 GNAC) and Albertus Magnus College (27-13, 15-7 GNAC) split a Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) softball doubleheader on Sunday afternoon. The Monks opened with a 3-2 victory and the Falcons salvaged the split with a 6-0 win in the nightcap.
With the split, Saint Joseph's earns the #2 seed in the GNAC Tournament and will host two games on Friday, as the winner of the #7 Emmanuel/#6 Norwich first round contest will face #3 Suffolk University at Richard W. Bailey Field in the first tourney tilt with the Monks taking on the winner in the second game.
Albertus Magnus has clinched the #4 seed and will play the #8 Simmons/#5 University of Saint Joseph first round victor at top-seeded Johnson & Wales University Friday at 3:00 PM.
GAME ONE – SAINT JOSEPH'S 3, ALBERTUS MAGNUS 2
HOW IT HAPPENED:
Saint Joseph's snapped a scoreless stalemate with a run off three hits in the top of the fifth, when freshman Madisyn Charest (Sidney, Maine) – pinch running for Jennifer Murphy (Andover, Mass.), who singled – scored on a Kristal Smith (Pittston, Maine) base hit.
The Falcons countered with two runs on one swing with two out in the bottom of the fifth, when freshman Laura Anderson (East Haven, Conn.) belted a two-run homer to lift her team to a 2-1 edge.
The Monks managed to tie the game in the top of the sixth, when senior Carla Tripp (Lovell, Maine) walked and later scored on a Murphy groundout, and pushed across the eventual game-winning run in the seventh, when sophomore Melodie Bailey (Lebanon, Maine) led off with a single and later scored on a Kaylee Burns (Saco, Maine) base hit.
IN THE CIRCLE:
Smith picked up the victory and improves to 7-5 after allowing two runs on 10 hits and a walk with five strikeouts in a complete-game effort.
Albertus Magnus junior Megan Ferraro (Branford, Conn.) falls to 13-5 after yielding three runs on seven hits and a walk with a strikeout over seven frames.
OFF THE BAT – SAINT JOSEPH'S:
- Burns, the Monks' only repeat-hitter, was 2-3 with an RBI
- Tripp went 1-2 with a run, a double, and a walk
OFF THE BAT – ALBERTUS MAGNUS:
- Anderson was 3-4 with a run and a two-run homer
- Junior Gillian Fortier (Naugatuck, Conn.) went 4-4 with a run scored
GAME TWO – ALBERTUS MAGNUS 6, SAINT JOSEPH'S 0
HOW IT HAPPENED:
The Falcons scored single runs in the first and second and took advantage of an SJC error en route to scoring four unearned runs in the sixth to account for the hosts' offensive output. In the meantime, the Monks mustered just five hits, all singles, and advanced only one runner past second base in the team's first shutout loss in nearly two weeks.
The loss also halts the Monks' winning streak at 10 games.
IN THE CIRCLE:
Senior Kylie McFadden (Dover, N.H.) suffered the loss despite tossing just one inning, during which she allowed one run off one hit and a walk, and falls to 10-6 on the season. Freshman Kate Whitney (Jonesboro, Maine) worked five frames and allowed five runs (one earned) off nine hits and a walk with two punch-outs.
Anderson took the ball in game two for the Falcons and scattered five hits with three walks and four K's in a complete-game shutout performance. She improves to 11-4 with the victory.
OFF THE BAT – SAINT JOSEPH'S:
- Tripp was 1-2 with a walk and a stolen base
- Senior Mariah Harrison (Buxton, Maine) reached the 100-hit plateau for her career with a single in the top of the fourth
- Freshman Maizie Lee (Saco, Maine) worked a pair of walks in three plate appearances
OFF THE BAT – ALBERTUS MAGNUS:
- Fortier went 2-3 with two runs and an RBI
- Senior Rachel Cataudella (Shelton, Conn.) was 2-2 with a pair of runs
- Anderson helped her own cause by going 2-4 with a double
HISTORICALLY SPEAKING:
With the split, Saint Joseph's is now 16-6 in the history of the series with Albertus Magnus College. The Monks' opening win was the team's first since 2015 and snapped a three-game skid at the hands of the Falcons.
#GOMONKS
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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.
