HAMPTON, Va. – Freshman pitcher Giana LaCedra (Tyngsboro, Mass.) threw a one-hitter, while graduate student Mya Case (Syracuse, N.Y.) totaled four doubles, as the UMass Lowell softball team (2-6) defeated Quinnipiac (2-2), 9-1, on Sunday morning in Hampton, Va.

"It was exciting to have Giana with such a strong performance on the mound as a freshman," claimed Head Coach Jen Starek. "Mya sparked our offense and really set the tone for where we want to be offensively."

Case finished 4-for-4 with her four doubles and three runs scored to lead the offense. The game concluded after the fifth inning when junior Morgan Fisher (Glassboro, N.J.) walked it off for the River Hawks with an RBI single to make it a run-rule victory. Fisher racked up a 2-for-4 statline at the plate with two RBI. Junior Elizabeth Frederick (Sunapee, N.H.) and senior Cayla Tulley (Corona, Calif) each had two hits and an RBI, as well, for the River Hawks.

After two and a half scoreless innings of play, the River Hawks broke the game wide open with four runs in the home half of the third. Case smashed a two-RBI double before the opposition could record an out, which was followed by Fisher and Frederick RBI singles to make it 4-0. 

The scoring continued for the River Hawks in the fourth and fifth innings. Graduate student Tori Mueller (Clovis, Calif.) led the fourth off with a single, and was immediately plated by another RBI double from Case. Case would eventually cross the plate due to a Quinnipiac error, bringing the game to the fifth inning with a 6-0 River Hawk lead. Senior Brenna Davenport (Merrimack, N.H.) kicked off the fifth with a base hit and was driven in by Case's fourth double, before Tulley and Fisher tallied back-to-back RBI singles to end it at 9-1.

LaCedra was lights out in the circle for the River Hawks in just her second collegiate appearance, taking a no-hitter into the fifth inning before a Julia Woeste solo shot. She finished with just that one hit allowed and eight strikeouts.

The River Hawks will now have 13 days until they travel to Louisiana Tech for the LA Tech Tournament where the squad will face off against the hosts and Houston Christian on Saturday, March 4 and Sunday, March 5.