LOWELL, Mass. – The offense did not let up all weekend for the UMass Lowell softball team (18-11), as it clinched its second straight sweep by downing Hartford, 8-3, on Sunday.
 
The team opened America East play on a strong note this weekend, outscoring the visitors, 25-7, over the three-game set.
 
"Any time you can take three games from a team, I think it's something to be excited about," said Head Coach Jen Starek. "It's hard to win all three games. Hitting the ball well has been something we've put a lot of emphasis on, especially at the beginning of the season. We want to be a better hitting team this year. The players have responded well to that and are having fun with it. We've had some great at-bats."
 
Experience in graduate students Olivia Labbe (Rochester, Mass.) and Maria Moccio (Feeding Hills, Mass.) helped to get the River Hawks on the scoreboard Sunday. The duo pulled through to drive in all five of the River Hawks runs in the second inning. Senior Tori Mueller (Clovis, Calif.) also turned in an impressive showing at the plate, recording three hits and scoring twice. In the circle, junior Ryley White (Wareham, Mass.) racked up six strikeouts en route to her twelfth win of the season.
 
An RBI single by junior Cayla Tulley (Corona, Calif.) led off the scoring for UMass Lowell in the opening frame. They blew things open in the second with a five-hit inning, spearheaded by a two RBI double by Moccio. Later, Labbe stood in and hit a towering three-run homer beyond the center field fence to boost the River Hawk advantage to 6-0. 
 
Hartford retaliated by scraping across one run in their return to the plate, but the defense held to minimize the threat.
 
A hard-hit ball to third base by sophomore Lea White (Meriden, Conn.) got her safely to first and bought enough time for Tulley to run the 60 feet home to score, pushing the lead to 7-1 at the end of the fifth inning.
 
Both teams recorded one more run each in the sixth frame, with the River Hawks' coming on a sacrifice fly hit to center field by sophomore Becca Vaillancourt (Tiverton, R.I.).
 
While a seventh inning solo home run could have started a rally for the visiting Hawks, UMass Lowell tightened up defensively to wrap up the weekend sweep, 8-3. 
 
The River Hawks will remain at home for a mid-week, non-conference matchup with Siena on Thursday, April 7. The doubleheader is set to begin with a 2 p.m. first pitch for game one.