EASTON, Mass. (April 24, 2024) – The Stonehill College Softball team split its doubleheader at Fr. Gartland Field Wednesday afternoon, dropping the first and winning the second game over UMass Lowell.

GAME 1 - UMass Lowell 13 (9-25, 3-10 AE), Stonehill 4 (10-29, 2-13 NEC)

HOW IT HAPPENED

A two-run triple in the top of the first inning followed by a throwing error to bring in a third run gave UMass Lowell a 3-0 lead to open the doubleheader.

Stonehill tallied a run of its own in the bottom half of the first as junior Shannon Conte (Amesbury, Mass.) sent a line drive off the left-centerfield wall to plate redshirt sophomore May Dawes (Beacon Falls, Conn.), making the score 3-1.

After the River Hawks increased their lead to 5-1 in the top of the fourth, the Skyhawks rattled off back-to-back RBI singles from freshman Harper Sullivan (Glendale, Ariz.) and sophomore Natalie Bottiglieri (Massapequa, N.Y.) to trim the deficit down to two runs, 5-3.

The final run of the game for Stonehill came off an RBI double from junior Chloe Kelly (East Bridgewater, Mass.) but a seven-run seventh for UMass Lowell put the game out of reach at Stonehill fell 13-4 in the first game of Wednesday's doubleheader.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Riverhawks starter Ryley White pitched a complete game to improve to 8-10 on the year, throwing 145 pitches and slashing a stat line of 7 IP, 12 H, 4 ER, and 9 Ks.
• Conte had a 2-4 performance at the dish with an RBI while Dawes went 1-2, scoring a run and drawing two walks.
• Freshman Haleigh Reed (Mesa, Ariz.) had a 2-2 start with a walk drawn to begin the afternoon.
• Morgan Fisher capped off the River Hawks high scoring afternoon with a grand slam in the seventh inning.
• Freshman Alex Sciaretto (Bristol, Conn.) threw 4.1 IP, allowing just two runs and tallying five strikeouts, the second most punchouts she's recorded in a game this season.

GAME 2 - Stonehill 6 (11-29, 2-13 NEC), UMass Lowell 1 (9-26, 3-10 AE)

HOW IT HAPPENED

After two scoreless innings to start the game, Stonehill opened the scoring in the bottom of the third as Dawes continued her strong play Wednesday afternoon, ripping a two-RBI single into left-center field to put the Skyhawks up 2-0.

Freshman Alexa Hospodar (Old Bethpage, N.Y.) continued to dominate for the first four innings, walking just two batters and bringing a no-hitter into the fifth.

UMass Lowell scored its first run in the fifth after a pair of singles got the River Hawks on the board but Stonehill responded in the next half-inning with four runs of its own.

RBIs from Bottiglieri, Conte, and junior Isabella Therrien (Auburn, Mass.) catapulted the Skyhawks to a 6-1 lead heading into the sixth but Hospodar closed out the game with four strikeouts, all swinging, to secure the non-conference win.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Hospodar improved to 4-7 on the season and dominated, matching a career-high four strikeouts in just her second start of April. The freshman is 2-1 with a 3.00 ERA in 23.1 IP and 15 strikeouts in the month of April.
• Conte went 1-3 with an RBI as she has now recorded a hit in nine of the past 12 games and currently leads the Skyhawks with 20 RBIs and a .324 batting average.
• Bottiglieri scored twice to improve upon her team-leading 17 runs scored this season.
• Stonehill is now 9-16 in non-conference play this season.

UP NEXT

• Stonehill softball returns to Northeast Conference play this weekend for a three-game series in Hackensack, N.J. against FDU, starting with a doubleheader on Saturday at 1 p.m. followed by one game on Sunday at noon.

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