Game 1 Box Score (PDF) | Game 2 Box Score (PDF) | Highlights

LOWELL, Mass. – Junior Alisha Welch (Langley, British Columbia) and sophomore Vanessa Cooper (Pleasant Gap, Pa.) each turned in a 3-for-6 (.500) performance at the plate in a pair of losses for the UMass Lowell softball team (4-21, 0-2 AE) against America East Conference opponent Binghamton (11-9, 2-0 AE) on Saturday.
 
The River Hawks fell, 16-1, in six innings in their home opener before dropping a 5-0 decision in game two to wrap up their first day of league play for the 2016 season.
 
"We didn't come out well at all in the first game, but we were able to turn it around and keep things a little tighter through most of the second game," said Head Coach Danielle Henderson. "We just need to come up with some clutch hitting. We are getting people on, but we just need more timely hits from our batters."
 
Welch accounted for the team's lone run on the day, while sophomore Samantha McQueen (Ewing, N.J.) picked up her squad's only RBI. Freshman Kaysee Talcik (Shelton, Conn.) earned the start in game one, turning in 5.1 innings of work before being relieved by junior Lauren Ramirez (Dracut, Mass.). Freshman Sydney Wash (Suffolk, Va.) went the distance in game two.
 
The Bearcats were quick to pull in front in game one with a pair of runs in the top of the first inning. However, UMass Lowell answered in its first trip to the dish when Welch tagged a double to right center before McQueen brought her home on a base hit through the left side, slashing the difference in half at 2-1.
 
Griffin McIver led off the second with a solo homer to regain a two-run buffer for Binghamton. The visitors then loaded the bases for Jessica Rutherford, who drew a four-pitch walk to score the lead runner and make the score 4-1. In the home half of the inning, sophomore Kate Mims (West Chester, Pa.) turned on a changeup and sent a liner to left, but would be stranded there.
 
Both sides went three-up and three-down in the third, but BU plated one run in each of its next two at-bats to create a 6-1 buffer after five complete innings. The Bearcats put the game out of reach in the top of the sixth, rallying for 10 runs on eight hits and two River Hawk miscues to make the score 16-1. Cooper and Mims logged back-to-back hits with two outs to extend their team's final at-bat, although UMass Lowell was unable to cut into the lead, sealing the decision for the Bearcats in six innings.
 
In game two, Wash and the River Hawk defense made quick work of the Bearcats during their first two chances. The home squad threatened to break the game open in the bottom of the first, as junior Tori Alcorn (Lowell, Mass.) earned a walk and Welch drove a single to center. Both runners moved into scoring position on a groundout, but would not advance any further.  
 
Binghamton got on the board in the top of the third, scratching a run across on a squeeze bunt by Gabby Bracchi. Freshman Brianna West (Fairfield, Conn.) singled up the middle to start off UMass Lowell's next trip to the dish, but she would eventually be called out for interference on her way to third.
 
T. Alcorn made a great diving stop to end the top of the fourth and keep the difference at just 1-0. The River Hawks made noise in the home half of the inning, loading the bases with a fielder's choice and a pair of hits from junior Taylor August (Howell, N.J.) and freshman Marisa Carrasco (Peoria, Ariz.), however all three runners were left.
 
The Bearcats came close to plating another run in the top of the fifth, but their lead runner was called out at third for not tagging up to end the inning. The visitors did strike again in the sixth, this time on a home run to left center by Taylor Chaffee. August and Carrasco each tallied a base hit in the River Hawks' next at-bat, but Binghamton added three runs in the seventh, including a two-run homer by Chaffee to help secure the 5-0 outcome.
 
Binghamton now leads the all-time series, 7-4. The River Hawks and Bearcats will wrap up its three-game series for the season in Lowell tomorrow, Sunday, March 27, with a single game beginning at 12 p.m.