SAN ANTONIO, Texas – Five River Hawks recorded three hits apiece on the day, as UMass Lowell (0-4) fell in both games of a doubleheader versus UTSA (4-0) at Roadrunner Field at the UTSA Invitational on Saturday.
The River Hawks fell, 4-2, in game one before falling, 14-13, in game two.
In game one, sophomore
Olivia DeCitise (Troy, N.Y.) and freshman
Emily Baumes (Rexford, N.Y.) each went 2-for-3.
DeCitise got the start in the circle, throwing two innings with two strikeouts. Junior
Giana LaCedra (Tyngsboro, Mass.) pitched the remaining four, allowing no runs and striking out two.
In game two, freshman
Avery Spinello-Branch (Lorton, Va.) went 3-for-6 with one RBI, senior
Emily Tow (North Kingstown, R.I.) went 3-for-5 with one RBI and sophomore
Isabel Quintanilla (Puyallup, Wash.) went 2-for-2 with one RBI and two doubles. Freshman
Grace Stepp (Richboro, Pa.) recorded three RBI on the day.
Senior
Jen Slanovec (Bethlehem, Pa.) got the start in the circle, throwing 1.2 innings. DeCitise came in for relief, pitching 2.1 innings and striking out one. LaCedra finished up the remaining two innings, striking out one.
Baumes got game one started, poking an infield base hit deep to second. Quintanilla followed with an RBI double to left field to get the River Hawks on the board early.
DeCitise tried to help herself in the top of the second, ripping a single to right field. The Roadrunners answered with back-to-back hits in the bottom of the inning, but DeCitise powered through to strikeout two in a row to get out of the jam.
UTSA grabbed the lead in the bottom of the third, 4-1, as a Roadrunner was able to slap the ball through the right side, resulting in an RBI, ahead of a three-run homer over the left field wall.
In the top of the fifth, DeCitise sent another single to right field and Baumes singled to third. Then with the bases now loaded for the River Hawks, an error would push in one with Spinello-Branch earning the RBI to cut UTSA's lead to 4-2.
UMass Lowell was able to hold UTSA for the remainder of the game, but was not able to generate any more runs, resulting in a 4-2 victory for the Roadrunners.
In game two UMass Lowell quickly got the bats going in the top of the first, putting up five runs. Freshman
Kate Hardy (Alexandria, Va.) received the first RBI of the inning as she hit a single up the middle. Quintanilla followed with a double down the right field line to send home another River Hawk. Freshman
Thyanais Santiago (Methuen, Mass.) and Stepp were up next as they both earned singles to the outfield. Stepp's hit was enough to send two River Hawks home. UTSA answered back with three runs in the bottom of the inning to chip away at the River Hawks lead and make it 5-3.
The Roadrunners generated five runs in the second inning, to take the lead, 8-5.
In the fourth inning, UMass Lowell ripped regained the lead, crossing the plate five times to increase the lead to 10-8. Tow, DeCitise, Santoli and Spinello all earned base hits to make the scoring possible. DeCitise had a memorable single that soared through the left side. In the home half of the inning, UTSA was able to tie the score at 10-10.
The Roadrunners then took the 14-10 lead in the bottom of the fifth, scoring four.
UMass Lowell was able to put three runs on the board in the seventh, as Santiago singled through the right side, pushing Tow across the plate. The final two runs were generated by a walk and a fielder's choice for the home team. The River Hawks had an excellent offensive game, but it was not enough to take down UTSA.
The River Hawks are back in action tomorrow for their final day at the UTSA Invitational, as they will take on SIUE with first pitch scheduled for 11:30 a.m. at Roadrunner Field.
