River Hawks Sweep Doubleheader at UMBC

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River Hawks Sweep Doubleheader at UMBC to Take Series

Box Score (PDF) – Game 1 | Game 2

BALTIMORE, Md. – Senior Samantha McQueen (Ewing, N.J.) went 3-for-6 with two doubles and two RBI to help the UMass Lowell softball team (8-17, 2-1 AE) sweep a doubleheader at UMBC (6-21, 1-2 AE) on Saturday.

Despite being tied at 1-1 for the last four innings of regulation, the River Hawks worked to take a 4-2, extra-innings decision in game one. The squad then earned a 7-2 win against the Retrievers in the series finale.

“I thought we showed up today with a lot more energy,” said Head Coach Danielle Henderson. “We went all out on defense and didn’t see balls dropping. We also did a good job at the plate. We passed the bat to one another and just kept making things happen.”

Three other River Hawks finished the day with three hits apiece, including redshirt-sophomore Casey Harding (Cheshire, Conn.), who totaled team-best marks with four runs and three RBI. Freshman Lovina Capria logged a personal-best 10 strikeouts in the game one win, while junior Kaysee Talcik (Shelton, Conn.) earned her first victory of the season in game two.

The River Hawks took advantage of their very first trip to the plate, as senior Madison Alcorn (Lowell, Mass.) drove a lead-off home run to left to start the day. However, the Retrievers were quick to erase the difference, knotting the score at 1-1 with an RBI double to center field.

Both teams went three-up and three-down in the second, as senior Vanessa Cooper (Pleasant Gap, Pa.) went full splits at first base to turn a double play for the visitors. UMass Lowell carried the momentum into the third, threatening to pull ahead by loading the bases with a single from Alcorn, and walks from sophomore Courtney Cashman (Danvers, Mass.) and freshman Sara Siteman (Hudson, N.H.), although the squad was unable to capitalize.

The teams combined for a total of seven runners left on through the next four innings, as Capria came up with big strikeouts to strand Retrievers in scoring position in both the fifth and sixth, keeping the 1-1 stalemate intact to send the game into extras.

The River Hawks would only need one extra frame to seal the decision. Harding lined a two-out double to plate the go-ahead run in the top of the eighth before freshman Sarah Ratcliffe (Pelham, N.H.) roped what would be a game-winning, two-run homer to left. The Retrievers got one run back in their final at-bat, but the visitors were able to close out the 4-2 win.

UMass Lowell’s bats stayed hot in the series finale, rallying for five runs on five hits in the top of the first, including a two-RBI double to left center by McQueen. UMBC chipped away with two runs in the second, although sophomore Emily Stevenson (West Jefferson, Ohio) put a ball in play that allowed Harding to score in the third to put the River Hawks on top, 6-2.

The visitors extended their lead to the 7-2 margin of victory in the fifth on a long ball from Harding over the fence in right center.

The River Hawks return to action on Wednesday, April 4 for a mid-week tilt at Bryant beginning at 4 p.m.