PHOTO CREDIT: Chris Theodores '24
HENNIKER, N.H. – The Saint Joseph's College softball team (11-12, 7-1 GNAC) picked up a pair of Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) North Division victories at New England College (9-20, 3-9 GNAC) on Saturday afternoon. The Monks opened with an 8-1 triumph and earned the sweep – and the team's ninth-consecutive victory – with a 6-2 win.
SAINT JOSEPH'S 8, NEW ENGLAND COLLEGE 1:
The Monks grabbed a 1-0 lead in the first inning when Charlotte Bouchard (Biddeford, Maine) singled and junior Mollie Verreault (Scarborough, Maine) scored on an outfield throwing error. St. Joe's grabbed a 4-0 advantage with three runs on five hits and an NEC error in the top of the fourth, when junior catcher Abby Carpenter (Bath, Maine) lofted a sac fly and Charlotte Cloutier (Lewiston, Maine) and Sadie Tirrell (Naples, Maine) roped run-scoring singles.
The teams swapped scores in the sixth inning and the Monks capped the game scoring with three runs in the seventh, when junior Paige Connery (Tyngsboro, Mass.) and sophomore Hannah Gosselin (Biddeford, Maine) notched RBI base hits.
IN THE CIRCLE:
SJC junior Madison Pelletier (New Gloucester, Maine) picked up the win and improves to 5-7 on the season after giving up a run on five hits and a walk in a complete game effort.
NEC starter Olivia Olson falls to 8-10 after yielding five runs (four earned) on 10 hits across six innings while Wren Anhalt gave up three runs (two earned) on three hits in one inning of relief.
AT THE BAT:
- Connery was 3-4 with a run and an RBI
- Pelletier went 2-4 with two runs and a double
- Cloutier was 2-3 with a run, a double, and two RBI
- Verreault went 2-4 with a run scored
SAINT JOSEPH'S 6, NEW ENGLAND COLLEGE 2:
The Pilgrims opened the nightcap with two runs on just one hit, as Grace Giesler led off with a triple and scored on an Emma Lopez groundout and Lemay was hit by a pitch and crossed the plate on another infield groundout.
The Monks quickly erased the deficit and then some, as the Royal Blue plated four runs on five hits in the top of the second, when Connery notched an RBI double and later scored on a first-and-third steal play, Gosselin roped an RBI single and eventually crossed the plate on a bases loaded walk.
Saint Joseph's tacked on single runs in the sixth and seventh innings, as Gosselin rapped an RBI single in the former and freshman Kryslin Stearns (Concord, N.H.) belted a run-scoring double in the latter.
IN THE CIRCLE:
SJC senior starter Lydia Goodnough (Kennebunkport, Maine) improves to 6-3 on the season after allowing two runs on seven hits with three strikeouts in a complete game performance.
Jocelin Vachon falls to 1-4 after giving up six runs (five earned) on nine hits with six punch outs over seven frames.
AT THE BAT:
- Gosselin went 2-3 with a run, two RBI, and a stolen base
- Junior third baseman Sylvia Foley (Scarborough, Maine) was 2-4 with two runs and a double
- Sophomore center fielder Sadie Tirrell (Naples, Maine) added two hits and a run in four at-bats
- For NEC, Giesler went 3-4 with a run, a double, and a stolen base and Abigail Grimes went 2-3 with a two-bagger
NEXT!
Saint Joseph's will host Albertus Magnus College tomorrow in a GNAC doubleheader slated to start at 12:00 PM.
