Box Score 1 | Box Score 2
LOWELL, Mass. – After dropping game one against UMBC (14-10, 6-1 AE) by a score of 3-2, the UMass Lowell softball team (13-19-1, 3-4 AE) evened the series in game two with a walk-off 3-2 victory in 11 innings (14-10, 6-1 AE) on Friday afternoon at River View Field.

"It was awesome," said Head Coach Jen Starek. "Tough team in the conference, having a freshman come out and throw that well against them, and having the team grind at-bat after at-bat. We stuck with it, we grinded, we got on plan, and it took a long time, but we executed." 

Junior Ellie Frederick (Sunapee, N.H.) led the River Hawks offensively through the doubleheader, finishing 4-for-8 with two solo home runs, one of which tied the game in the bottom of the seventh inning of game two. Tori Mueller also found success from the plate, going 3-for-8 with two runs scored. 

Senior Ryley White (Wareham, Mass.) pitched a complete game in the game one loss, allowing three earned runs with three strikeouts. Freshman Giana LaCedra (Tyngsboro, Mass.) tossed all 11 innings of the game two win, allowing two earned runs with four strikeouts.

The River Hawks were the first team on the board in game one, scoring two runs in the bottom half of the third. Frederick got it started with an opposite-field solo shot over the right center fence and graduate student Tori Mueller (Clovis, Calif.) followed that up with a bunt single to third base. Graduate student Mya Case (Syracuse, N.Y.) drove her in on a double to the left center gap to make it 2-0. 

After a scoreless fourth, the Retrievers responded in the fifth, tallying three runs on a Madison Wilson two-RBI double and Jerzie Nutile RBI single to take the one-run lead. Both pitchers battled throughout the sixth and seventh innings, keeping runs off the board to end the game at 3-2 in favor of the Retrievers. 

The dramatic game two began with three consecutive runless innings, as LaCedra and UMBC's Courtney Coppersmith were shutting down each other's lineups. UMBC scored first in the fourth inning, when Ashley Della Guardia crossed the plate on a River Hawk miscue. However, the hosts were quick to respond, adding a run of their own in the fifth on a freshman Katelyn Fitzgerald (Ambler, Pa.) RBI single, scoring sophomore Emily Tow (North Kingstown, R.I.), who drew a walk earlier in the inning. 

With the game knotted up at one, the game entered extra innings. It got even more interesting when both teams scored one run in the eighth. UMBC got on the board with a Wilson RBI double and Frederick tied it up once again on a one-out solo homer to right field to extend the game. Both pitchers dueled for the ninth and 10th innings, not allowing any runner past second base, bringing it to the 11th inning. UMBC got one runner on in the top frame, but was not able to produce any runs. With one out in the bottom of the 11th, Mueller singled up the middle to give the River Hawks a chance. She got in scoring position after stealing second base and advancing to third on a passed ball with two outs. Junior Morgan Fisher (Glassboro, N.J.) then entered the batter's box and hit a hard line drive to a diving Retriever shortstop that was unable to squeeze the ball in her glove, driving in Mueller and walking it off for the River Hawks, 3-2.

Both teams will return to River View Field tomorrow, Saturday, April 8 at 12 p.m. for the America East Conference rubber match.