UND Box Score (PDF) | Yale Box Score (PDF)

AUBURN, Ala. – The UMass Lowell softball team (3-5) finished on a high note at the 2017 Tiger Invitational, sweeping a pair of games on Saturday.
 
The River Hawks first secured a 10-2 victory against North Dakota in game one before earning a thrilling, 4-3 extra innings win in walk-off fashion against Yale in game two.
 
"Today showed what all the tough competition has been training us to do," said Head Coach Danielle Henderson. "Yesterday we played two top opponents and I feel like it gave us more confidence today with what we were able to do at the plate. We battled and played to win."
 
Sophomore Sydney Barker (Upland, Calif.) ripped the two-run home run in the bottom of the eighth against Yale that secured the walk-off win and completed the sweep. Juniors Madison Alcorn (Lowell, Mass.) (2-3) and Vanessa Cooper (Pleasant Gap, Pa.) (3-6) both batted over .600 on the day to lead the squad's offense. Senior Tori Alcorn (Lowell, Mass.), who totaled a career-high four RBI against North Dakota, went 4-for-7 (.571) on the day, while freshman Marianne Sparacia (Spring Hill, N.J.) hit .500 with a team-best three runs scored.
 
North Dakota threatened in the first inning of game one, but sophomore pitcher Kaysee Talcik (Shelton, Conn.) was able to force a pair of strikeouts and a groundout to end the at-bat. The River Hawks broke the game open with three runs in the top of the second, thanks to a two-RBI liner to left by T. Alcorn and a hard-hit ball by freshman Courtney Cashman (Danvers, Mass.) that the UND right fielder was unable to handle.
 
In UMass Lowell's next trip to the dish, Sparacia extended the inning with a two-out single to center before scoring on a double from Cooper to make the score 4-0. Neither side would get on the board in the fourth, but UND broke up the no-hitter and plated two in the fifth to cut the lead in half.
 
The River Hawks worked to get the runs back in the six, however, using home runs from Cooper and T. Alcorn to pull away, 7-2. The squad added three more in the seventh on four hits, including a RBI single to left by junior Kate Mims (West Chester, Pa.), to help seal the 10-2 decision.
 
Talcik allowed just two hits in the outing, while picking up a career-high eight strikeouts.
 
In the night cap against Yale, T. Alcorn and Cashman got things started with a walk and base hit, respectively, before Barker sent one high and deep to left, but was robbed of what would have been a three-run shot to keep the game scoreless through one.
 
UMass Lowell jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the second when hits by Cooper and senior Alisha Welch (Langley, British Columbia) put runners in scoring position for M. Alcorn, who laced a RBI two-bagger to left center. The Bulldogs erased the difference in the fourth, though, thanks to a double and a sacrifice fly.
 
Both sides combined for five runners left on through the next two innings. The River Hawks had a chance to end the game in regulation in the bottom of the seventh, but M. Alcorn, who led off the inning with a double to the wall, was thrown out at the plate, forcing extras. The Bulldogs plated one in the eighth, but the River Hawks answered with Barkers' two-run blast that resulted in the 4-3 win.
 
The River Hawks will enjoy a week off before heading to the Carolinas for spring break, where they will partake in a pair of tournaments beginning on March 10 at the Holy City Showdown hosted by the College of Charleston.