LOWELL, Mass. – Offensive misfortunes turned into successes as the UMass Lowell softball team (25-18, 9-7 America East) bounced back for a game two victory over Stony Brook (31-15, 10-5 America East) in its Friday doubleheader.
The River Hawks were held to one hit to open the afternoon with a 2-0 loss but rebounded in their second contest to trounce the Seawolves, 11-3, in six innings.
"I thought we played really well all day," said Head Coach
Jen Starek. "I thought we had great pitching, just a bit of an unlucky break with one. It's exactly what we want to see from our pitching going into the playoffs. The hitting was good even in the first game, we just seemed to get unlucky hitting right at people. They dug in, stayed with it, and went right back at it in game two. The defense was on-point as well."
Despite the loss, freshman
Jen Slanovec (Bethlehem, Pa.) recorded a new season high in strikeouts, by sitting down eight opposing hitters. Graduate student
Maria Moccio (Feeding Hills, Mass.) continued to perform at the plate, driving in three RBI including a two-run homer in the team's victory. Three other hitters would also hit for two RBI performances – junior
Cayla Tulley (Corona, Calif.) and sophomores
Elizabeth Frederick (Sunapee, N.H.) and
Lea White (Meriden, Conn.).
The first tilt against the visitors opened as a pitching duel, with neither team able to generate baserunners. The top half of the third went quickly as Slanovec struck out the side to bring her total to six in the ball game.
UMass Lowell pressured in the home half of the inning by getting two runners into scoring position, but a ground out closed the door on the chance before anyone could be brought home.
The Seawolves maneuvered a runner to third base following a walk to lead off the fourth frame. Later, a wild pitch gave them the chance to get on the board and take the lead, 1-0.
The River Hawks continued to put the ball in play but were unable to find the gaps in the defense. UMass Lowell struck out in just three plate appearances throughout the opening matchup. Graduate student
Olivia Labbe (Rochester, Mass.) gave the squad a fighting chance by drawing walks in all three of her trips to the dish but would never complete the round trip.
A solo home run in the seventh inning by Stony Brook would tally the final score to seal the series opener, 2-0.
As the page flipped to the second end of the twin bill, so did the story of UMass Lowell's offensive struggles. Tulley vaulted the River Hawks onto the scoreboard in the first frame by turning on a pitch to drive it down the left field line and over the fence for a two-run shot.
UMass Lowell would go on for a five run, second inning to take a 7-0 advantage over the Seawolves. Miscues by the Stony Brook defense allowed the home team to capitalize with runners on. Junior
Brenna Davenport (Merrimack, N.H.) hit a grounder to second base, allowing Frederick to come across safely from third. One batter later and with loaded bases, White cracked a hard-hit ball to second as well to bring in a pair of runners, making it 5-0. Sophomore
Morgan Fisher (Glassboro, N.J.) and Moccio would both go on to record RBI with infield knocks by the end of the inning.
Stony Brook etched their way onto the score sheet with an RBI single in the third, creating a 7-1 ball game that would hold for just one more frame.
Tulley drew a two out walk for the River Hawks in the home half of the fourth to bring Moccio to the plate once again. She took advantage of a pitch high and outside to drive it over the right field fence for a two-run home run, giving UMass Lowell a 9-1 lead.
The visitors responded with a two-run shot of their own, but a two-RBI single up the gut in the bottom of the sixth by Frederick wrapped up game two, 11-3.
The River Hawks will honor academic and athletic achievements with an alternate graduation ceremony followed by Senior Day festivities ahead of the series conclusion. UMass Lowell will play its final regular season game against Stony Brook on Saturday, May 7, at approximately 12 p.m.
