Easton, Mass. (April 29) -- Saint Anselm blasted out 12 hits and six first-inning runs in a 9-1 victory in game before dropping a 2-1 final to Stonehill on a windy Thursday afternoon. The split leaves the Hawks at 18-22 overall and 11-15 in the Northeast-10 with four regular-season games remaining.

Game One: Saint Anselm 9, Stonehill 1 (5 innings)
The first six runners of the game reached safely as the Hawks pounded out seven first-inning hits and six runs, en route to a 9-1 victory over the Skyhawks.

After a leadoff single thru the left side by senior Moira McCabe (Brookline, N.H.), the Hawks took a 2-0 lead on a two-run homer thru the wind to left center by junior Kayla McEachern (Stoneham, Mass.). The Hawks got seven more hits in the inning, including three straight singles from Jackie Giannino (Beverly, Mass.), Liz Trafton (Berwick, Maine) and freshman Amanda Massad (Grafton, Mass.), to build the lead. Freshman Kylene Pease (Ashland, Mass.) was the sixth straight batter to reach base in in the frame, getting on via a throwing error by the Skyhawk third baseman.

The Skyhawks got one back in the bottom of the second with a two-out rally. Kelsey Wilcox singled to left and came home on an RBI double to right center by Ashley Langlois for the lone Stonehill run.

Saint Anselm added a single run in the third and two in the fourth to account for the 9-1 final. Pease singled up the middle with two outs in the third and came home on an RBI single to left center by Lauren Galavotti (Marion, Mass.). In the fourth, junior Raylyn Glavin (Saugus, Mass.) led off with a single to center and stole second. Giannino doubled to left center to drive in Glavin and later in the inning, McCabe came home on a sacrifice bunt by Trafton for the game's final run. McCabe reached earlier in the inning on an infield single.

Giannino, McCabe and Galavotti were each 2-for-3 in the game, while Pease was 1-for-2 with two runs scored and McEachern had a pair of RBI. Freshman Shannon Dalton (Concord, Mass.) went five innings, allowing just five hits while striking out two to improve to 5-7 overall. Kait Mendall dropped to 6-4 for Stonehill, getting knocked around for 12 hits and eight earned runs in just 3.1 innings pitched.

Game Two: Stonehill 2, Saint Anselm 1
Following the game-one offensive outburst, game two was relatively quiet as two home runs provided all the scoring in a 2-1 Stonehill win as the teams picked up the split.

The Hawks got on the board early as Giannino hit her seventh home run of the season, this one to left center, for the 1-0 lead. Saint Anselm left four runners in scoring position over the course of the next six innings, but could manage just the lone first-inning run off Stonehill pitcher Samantha Krantz.

The game remained at 1-0 in favor of the Hawks until the bottom of the sixth, when Wilcox reached on a single thru the left side. Wilcox was pinch run for by Lindsay Bock, who moved up to second on a groundout. Nicole Eisenmann gave the Skyhawks the lead with one swing of the bat, hitting her third home run of the season for the 2-1 advantage.

For the Hawks, Trafton led the offense with a 2-for-3 showing, while three Stonehill players had a multi-hit game two, including Eisenmann. Krantz improved to 8-5 with the Skyhawk win, going seven innings and scattering six hits with five strikeouts. Senior Megan Lemire (Worcester, Mass.) went six innings for the Hawks, allowing eight hits and two runs with one strikeout.

Saint Anselm is back in action with a pair of Northeast-10 doubleheaders at home this week. The Hawks host New Haven on Saturday afternoon beginning at 1 p.m., followed by a Sunday doubleheader with Southern Connecticut that also begins at 1 p.m. Prior to the start of Sunday's twinbill, the Saint Anselm softball program will be recognizing the Class of 2010 (Lisa Caruso, Lizzy LeBrun, Megan Lemire and Moira McCabe) for their contributions to the program during their careers.