IPFW Box Score (PDF) | Detroit Box Score (PDF)

CLEARWATER, Fla. – Junior Alisha Welch (Langley, British Columbia) tallied a team-high six hits (.750) and four RBI, as the UMass Lowell softball team (3-10) dropped a pair of heartbreakers in walk-off fashion on day one of the Michele Smith Spring Break Tournament in Clearwater.
 
With both games decided in the bottom of the seventh, the River Hawks first fell, 6-5, against IPFW (4-16) before facing a 9-8 setback against Detroit (6-15) in the nightcap.

"We did a poor job in the first game all around, and even though it came down to the bottom of the seventh, our energy wasn't good," said Head Coach Danielle Henderson. "We did a much better job in the second game. We played harder, but Detroit came back and fought because that's the type of team they are. We need to learn to sustain our energy for an entire seven innings."
 
Welch turned in a .750 slugging percentage for the day. Sophomores Samantha McQueen (Ewing, N.J.) and Madison Alcorn (Lowell, Mass.) added to the offense, batting .556 (5-9) and .500 (3-6), respectively. M. Alcorn also scored a team-best three runs, while McQueen chipped in with two RBI. Junior Lauren Ramirez (Dracut, Mass.) started game one, striking out three in 4.1 innings of work. Freshman Sydney Wash (Suffolk, Va.) was called in for the last 1.2 innings to take the decision. Freshman Kaysee Talcik (Shelton, Conn.) went the distance in game two with a pair of strikeouts.
 
The River Hawks opened game one against IPFW with a single to right center by Welch and a walk by freshman Marisa Carrasco (Peoria, Ariz.), but both runners were stranded there. IPFW pulled in front, 1-0 in the home half of the inning, as Lauren Watson capitalized on a sacrifice bunt attempt, taking two bases before scoring on a throwing miscue on the same play.
 
Ramirez kept the River Hawks within one in the bottom of the second, forcing a pair of strikeouts and a fly out to retire the Mastodons in order. UMass Lowell carried that momentum into the third, rallying for four runs to take the upper hand. In that at-bat, McQueen drove a two-run double to the wall in center field, while senior Alyssa Zinkiewicz (Massapequa, N.Y.) and freshman Sydney Barker (Upland, Calif.) chipped in with one RBI apiece to give their squad the 4-1 advantage.
 "We did a poor job in the first game all around, and even though it came down to the bottom of the seventh, our energy wasn't good," said Head Coach Danielle Henderson. "We did a much better job in the second game. We played harder, but Detroit came back and fought because that's the type of team they are. We need to learn to sustain our energy for an entire seven innings."
UMass Lowell showed strength on defense with an unconventional double play in the home half of the inning during a sacrifice bunt that led to a rundown. IPFW plated three runs in the fourth, though, using one hit, an error and a wild pitch to knot the score at 4-4.
 
Wash came out of the bullpen for the River Hawks with one out in the bottom of the fifth, striking out the first two batters she faced. The visitors then scored the go-ahead run in the sixth, as Welch tagged a high fly ball to score M. Alcorn, who had reached on a base hit. However, the Mastodons loaded the bases in the bottom of the seventh for Taylor Lyman, who stepped in and roped a two-run double to steal the 6-5 walk-off.
 
The River Hawks' offense did not waste any time against Detroit in game two, jumping out to a 2-0 lead in the top of the first. Junior Tori Alcorn (Lowell, Mass.) led off with a triple down the right field line and freshman Brianna West (Fairfield, Conn.) followed with a RBI double to the same spot to put their team on the board. Later in the same at-bat, Barker stepped in with the bases loaded and ripped a shot through the left side to score the lead runner.
 
The Titans responded in their first trip to the dish, thanks to a hard hit ball by Savvy Ferstle that tied the score at 2-2. The stalemate was short-lived, though, as UMass Lowell put together a three-run second on four hits to create a 5-2 buffer. The River Hawks then extended their margin to 8-2 in the third with three unearned runs, including RBI from West and Welch.
 
The home team worked to erase the difference in the fourth, tallying six runs to make the score 8-8. The game turned into a defensive battle, as UMass Lowell and Detroit combined for five runners left on in the next two innings. Despite the effort, the game-winner would once again come in the bottom of the seventh, when Jenna Reeves sent a RBI single up the middle to secure the 9-8 outcome.
 
The River Hawks continue the Michele Smith Tournament with two more games tomorrow, Saturday, March 12. The team first takes on North Dakota at 9:15 a.m. before squaring off against USC Upstate at 11:30 a.m.