Box Score 1 | Box Score 2
WORCESTER, Mass. – The UMass Lowell softball team broke out of a hitting slump on Tuesday, pounding Holy Cross pitchers for 12 runs on 20 hits to sweep the doubleheader, 5-1 and 7-5, at Freshman Field.
 
"I tip my cap to our kids going down [to Worcester] midweek after a tough loss," said Head Coach Sean Cotter. "I think our team wanted to be out there more than their team and that went a long way to get our two wins today."
 
Marielle Handley (Durham, Conn.) earned her sixth victory and first save while Lauren Ramirez (Dracut, Mass.) picked up her third, guiding the River Hawks to an overall mark of 11-35 with a 1-13 record in the America East. The Crusaders, who lost all four games to the River Hawks this year, fall to 11-24 overall and 6-9 in the Patriot League.
 
Handley fanned a season-high eight batters in the first game while getting run support in the form of homeruns from Emily O'Brien (Salem, N.H.) and Alyssa Zinkiewicz (Massapequa, N.Y.) in the third. O'Brien hit a solo blast, and Zinkiewicz sent her first homer out two batters later.
 
"Marielle threw a lot of first pitch strikes, she was throwing hard, she was able to throw her drop curve in on lefty's and really pound the strike zone," said Cotter. "She's at her best when she's minimizing her walks, so that was really good for her today."
 
Melissa King (Stamford, Conn.) and Ally Greene (Tewksbury, Mass.) also picked up RBI's in the opener.
 
The backend of the twinbill was a back and forth affair until the River Hawks ripped off a five-run fourth inning, highlighted by a two-run triple to right by Ariana Darcy (Kingston, N.Y.). King, Alisha Welch (Langley, B.C.), and Abby Jamieson (Billerica, Mass.) supplied the remaining runs in the inning.
 
The River Hawks, who took a pair earlier this month, swept the four game season series from the Crusaders. Over the course of both games, seven River Hawks picked up and RBI.
 
"We're certainly happy about taking the season series from Holy Cross, happy to get double figure wins, lots of good stuff," said Cotter.
 
The River Hawks conclude their first Division I and America East season with the finale against Hartford on Friday and Saturday.