EASTON, Mass. (May 4, 2024) – The Stonehill College Softball team celebrated its 2024 graduating class before trading Northeast Conference wins at Fr. Gartland Field on Saturday, splitting a doubleheader with Central Connecticut State University.
GAME 1 – Stonehill 1 (14-35, 4-18 NEC), CCSU 0 (24-17, 11-11 NEC)
HOW IT HAPPENED
Senior Megan Lynch (Arlington, Mass.) made her debut in the circle for the Skyhawks despite only playing the infield for her entire career, forcing the Blue Devils leadoff hitter to fly out to center.
Junior Skylar Brandemarte (Poughkeepsie, N.Y.) came in for Lynch after she recorded the first out and Brandemarte began to deal for the Skyhawks.
Along with Brandemarte, CCSU starter Kaylee Whittaker also started the game strong as both teams managed just one hit through the first three innings of the game.
The Blue Devils had base runners on second and third with just one out in the fourth after a pair of base hits, but Brandemarte struck out back-to-back batters to escape any danger.
After another scoreless inning in the fifth, junior Chloe Kelly (East Bridgewater, Mass.) hammered a pitch over the plate and drove it over the left field fence to put Stonehill ahead 1-0 with her first career home run.
Brandemarte sat the Blue Devils down in order in the seventh as the Skyhawks picked up the NEC win, 1-0.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- Lynch made her pitching debut and cemented a 0.00 earned run average for her career after recording an out against the lone batter she faced.
- Brandemarte has now thrown 13.2 straight innings without allowing a run for the Skyhawks after throwing a complete-game shutout against Quinnipiac on Thursday.
- Brandemarte improved to 6-14 on the season and her ERA now sits at 4.86 on the year, the second-best mark on the team.
- Kelly extended her hit streak to six games with her first career homer.
- Freshman Harper Sullivan (Glendale, Ariz.) had the only other Skyhawk hit in the game after hitting a single in the first inning to go 1-3 at the plate.
- Sophomore Natalie Bottiglieri (Massapequa, N.Y.) extended her on-base streak to 13 games by drawing a walk.
- Senior Maeve Proulx (Westford, Mass.) made a massive impact in the field for the Skyhawks, making two acrobatic diving catches in right field to rob two separate extra-base hits from the Blue Devils
GAME 2 – CCSU 3 (25-17, 12-11 NEC), Stonehill 0 (14-36, 4-19 NEC)
HOW IT HAPPENED
The second game of Saturday's doubleheader started as a pitching duel with another two scoreless innings to begin the game but CCSU got on the board in the third inning with a two-RBI double down the left field line followed by another double to put the Blue Devils up 3-0.
Stonehill totaled two hits in the game with just one in the second inning and one in the fourth as CCSU starting pitcher Liz Hamilton was nearly perfect in her outing.
Hamilton held the Skyhawks scoreless while Stonehill starter freshman Alexa Hospodar (Old Bethpage, N.Y.) had a solid performance despite the three-run third inning. The Blue Devils secured an important NEC win in their hopes to leapfrog Merrimack for the final playoff spot.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- Hamilton improved to 10-5 on the year while Hospodar threw her fifth complete game of the season but dropped to 5-8.
- Sullivan tallied another hit to finish 1-3 for the second straight game, holding her team-high batting average of .346 steady.
UP NEXT
- Stonehill softball caps off the 2024 season tomorrow afternoon at Fr. Gartland Field as the program celebrates Coach Ken LeGrice Day and Alumni Day with festivities beginning at 11:30 a.m. before a noon first pitch.
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