BOSTON, Mass. – Saint Joseph's College (15-13, 3-1 GNAC) and Emmanuel College (15-13, 6-2 GNAC) split a Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) softball doubleheader on Sunday. The Monks opened with a 4-1 triumph and the Saints evened the score with a 1-0 victory in the closing contest.
SAINT JOSEPH'S 4, EMMANUEL 1:
The Monks opened the scoring in the top of the first when junior center fielder Lydia Goodnough (Kennebunkport, Maine) launched a two-run double to center field. Olivia Howe (Arundel, Maine) and Sylvia Foley (Scarborough, Maine) reached base with singles, and both scored on the Goodnough two-bagger.
The Saints scored a run with the help of an SJC error in the bottom of the fourth to make it a 2-1 game, but Howe belted a two-run homer in the top of the fifth to lift the visitors to a 4-1 advantage.
IN THE CIRCLE:
SJC senior starter Meredith Pence (Remington, Va.) allowed one unearned run off four hits and four walks with five strikeouts in the complete-game effort and improves to 9-2 with the victory.
Emmanuel starter Tianna Dawe suffered the setback after yielding four runs (three earned) on eight hits in 4.1 innings and falls to 7-12 with the loss. Mackenzie Briggs tossed 2.2 innings of scoreless relief while allowing two hits and fanning a pair.
AT THE BAT:
- Howe went 3-4 with two runs, a home run, and two RBI
- Goodnough was 1-3 with a two-run double
EMMANUEL 1, SAINT JOSEPH'S 0:
The Saints scored what proved to be the game's only run in the bottom of the first, when Taylor Chelak led off with a single and later crossed the plate on a double off the bat of Olivia Conti. The damage could have been worse as the hosts had the bases loaded with two out, but senior starter Sydney Hatch (Newburgh, Maine) induced an inning-ending popup to escape the jam.
IN THE CIRCLE:
Hatch falls to 2-4 on the season after allowing a run on four hits with three strikeouts over six innings.
Briggs allowed only two hits and three baserunners overall with three strikeouts over seven frames to improve to 7-1 this spring.
AT THE BAT:
- Foley and freshman Hannah Gosselin (Biddeford, Maine) both singled to account for the Monks' only two hits in the setback
- For Emmanuel, Conti was 2-3 with a double and an RBI and Chelak went 1-3 with a run scored
HISTORICALLY SPEAKING:
With today's split, Saint Joseph's is now 24-10 in the history of the series with Emmanuel College. For the Monks, the opening 4-1 triumph snapped a six-game losing streak at the hands of the Saints. The Monks' last win over the Saints was an 8-7 triumph in Boston on April 18th, 2018.
NEXT!
Saint Joseph's will play a non-conference doubleheader at the University of Southern Maine on Thursday. First pitch is slated for 4:00 PM.
