MANCHESTER, N.H. – Saint Anselm senior
Moira McCabe (Brookline, N.H.) set new all-time
records for both stolen bases and at-bats in a single season,
stealing her 16th base and taking her 153rd at-bat in game two of
today's doubleheader against the Southern Connecticut Owls to
close out her final season for the Hawks with a bang.
Nonetheless, the second-place Owls were too much for the Hawk team,
winning the first game, 5-0, and the second game, 8-2. The
Owls close out the regular season with a record of 37-11 (25-5
NE-10), while the Hawks finish 18-26 (11-19 NE-10).
Game 1: Southern Connecticut 5, Saint Anselm
0
The Owls started game one by scoring an unearned run in the top
of the first. Brittany Bucko led off with a
walk and was replaced at first base by Khristle
Lee who grounded into a force play. Megan
Caporossi popped out to third for the second out, but
Kristin Whitley then hit a single through the
right side. Right fielder Kayla McEachern (Stoneham,
Mass.) misplayed the ball, which allowed Whitley to reach
second and Lee to score before Lisa Caruso (Granby,
Conn.) could strike out Alyssa Pagano for
the final out of the inning.
McEachern walked with one out in the bottom of the first and
Liz Trafton (Berwick, Maine) moved her to second
with a single to left center, but Kylene Pease (Ashland,
Mass.) lined out to first base to end the inning.
Neither team put together much offense in the second or third
innings, and the Owls stranded Kerry Iacomini on
third after she hit a two-out triple in the top of the fourth to
keep it a one-run game. However, in the top of the fifth, the
Owls' bats came alive. Julianne Flood
led off with a single to left. Stacy Pouliot
popped out to second, but Bucko kept it going with a single to
left. Lee made it second and third with a groundout to second
base, and Caporossi then hit a two-out, two-RBI single up the
middle to put the Owls up 3-0. She stole second, and Whitley
drove her in with another single up the middle and then advanced to
second on the throw to the plate. Pinch hitter
Jessica Rosa walked, and Iacomini hit a single
through the right side. McEachern made a heads-up play in right,
catching Rosa in between second and third, throwing the ball in to
Trafton at second for the final out of the inning, but not before
Whitley crossed the plate to put the Owls up 5-0.
Looking to start a comeback in the bottom of the seventh,
Kat Scafidi (Hudson, N.H.) hit a two-out double
down the left field line, but Lizzy LeBrun (Rowley,
Mass.) popped out to short to end the game with a 5-0
final score.
Jayme Larson earned her 14th win of the season,
allowing just three hits and two walks while striking out four in
seven shutout innings. Lisa Caruso allowed all five runs,
four earned, on eight hits in 4.2 innings, and Shannon Dalton (Concord, Mass.) surrendered just one hit in 2.1
innings of scoreless relief.
Game 2: Southern Connecticut 8, Saint Anselm
2
The Owls got things going in the bottom of the second inning, as
Whitley led off with a walk. Iacomini popped out in foul
territory to the catcher, but Pagano kept it going with a single to
the right side. Alyssa Downs got to first on
a fielder's choice, as Trafton threw out Whitley at third
base. Flood then hit a single to right field. Pagano
scored from second easily, and Downs noticed that Amanda Massad (Grafton, Mass.) held onto the ball in right
instead of throwing it in right away, so she took advantage and
scored as well.
Caparossi hit a triple to right in the top of the third and
scored on a wild pitch during the next at-bat to give the Owls an
early 3-0 lead. Downs led off the top of the fourth with a
solo homer, and Whitley doubled and scored in the top of the fifth
to make it 5-0.
Pitcher Megan Lemire (Worcester, Mass.) led off
the bottom of the fifth inning. Making just her eighth plate
appearance of the season, Lemire got the Hawks fired up with a
single to right. Catcher Khristle Lee tried to catch her off
the base during the next at-bat but botched the throw, which
allowed Lemire to get all the way to third. Lizzy LeBrun
popped out to first base, and Moira McCabe then drove in Lemire
with an RBI single to left. She stole her record-setting 16th
base of the season on the next pitch and got to third on a throwing
error by Lee, but she was stranded there as McEachern flew out to
left field for the final out.
The Owls' offense did not let up in the top of the sixth,
as Downs led off with a single to shallow center and got to second
on a fielding error by Raylyn Glavin (Saugus,
Mass.). Flood flew out to right, but Robin
Priest drove in Downs with a hard-hit single off the glove
of Kylene Pease at third base and got to second on the throw to the
plate. Bucko popped out, but pinch hitter Nicole
Papale kept the inning alive getting hit by a pitch.
Caporossi and Whitley then followed her with back-to-back RBI
singles to make it 8-1.
The Hawks went down in order in the bottom of the sixth, and
pinch hitter Allison Lehner led off the top of the
seventh with a single through the right side. She was forced
out at second on a grounder by pinch hitter Jessica
Bonneville, and Jessica Rosa then grounded into an
inning-ending double play to the pitcher via runner's
interference by Bonneville at second.
The Hawks, unwilling to give up, led off the bottom of the
seventh with back-to-back singles by pinch hitters Allyn Doyle (Merrimack, N.H.) and Mary Fay (Stoughton,
Mass.). Lemire and LeBrun both got out, but McCabe,
in her record-setting 153rd at-bat of the season, kept the
Hawks' hopes alive with an RBI single to right center.
Kayla McEachern walked to load the bases, but Jackie Giannino (Beverly, Mass.) struck out on three straight
pitches to end the Hawks' season with an 8-2 loss.
In her final game as a Hawk, in addition to setting two new
school records, Moira McCabe went 3-for-4 with both RBI.
Brittany Hill picked up her ninth win of the
season, allowing two runs, one earned, on seven hits while striking
out six in seven full innings. Megan Lemire finished her Hawk
career with a loss, surrendering eight runs on 12 hits in the
complete game.
