SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – The Saint Anselm College softball team split Sunday afternoon's doubleheader with the Yellow Jackets of American International College, falling in game one by a 2-1 margin in extra innings but salvaging the final game by a 4-1 score.  The Hawks exit Sunday's action with a 10-14 overall record and a 4-4 Northeast-10 Conference record while the Yellow Jackets fall to 8-14 overall alongside a 6-8 conference record.

In the first game of the afternoon at Judy Groff Field, the Hawks fell to the Yellow Jackets by a 2-1 score in extra innings.  American International jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the first inning as three consecutive singles plated senior first baseman Sarah Calgreen with one out in the inning. 

Saint Anselm answered with a run in the next half inning as designated player Cara Crowley (Lynn, Mass.) led off the inning with a walk.  Despite getting two quick outs following Crowley's base on balls, American International pitcher Bethany Grimes served up an RBI double by outfielder Hayley Lombard (Coral Springs, Fla.) to knot the game at one apiece.

Both teams traded scoreless innings up until the bottom of the ninth inning when American International walked off with the win.  Two consecutive singles by Calgreen and shortstop Haley Marchand placed runners on first and second for Stephanie Belanger.  The junior designated player reached base on a fielding error by Hawks center fielder Monique Gauthier (Canton, Conn.), allowing Calgreen to cross home plate with the game-winning run.

Hawks starter Paige Cormier (Rochester, N.H.) earned the start for Saint Anselm, pitching four innings and allowing only one earned run while inducing eight groundball outs.  Reliever Alexis Bogdanovich (South Portland, Maine) kept her team in the game, pitching 4 1/3 innings of relief while striking out seven batters and allowing five hits.  With the game-winning run scored as unearned run, Bogdanovich (2-7) drew the tough-luck loss, her seventh of the season.

For the Yellow Jackets, Grimes pitched the first seven innings, allowing only one earned run while striking out seven Hawks batters.  Junior pitcher Erin Glikes (1-0) earned her first victory within the circle, striking out two batters in two innings of work.

Saint Anselm rebounded in the second game of the afternoon, jumping out to a 4-0 lead in the top of the third inning to capture a victory.  Lombard reached base to begin the inning following an error by Yellow Jackets hurler Kristen Dolan.  Hawks shortstop Nicole Boucher (Woonsocket, R.I.) followed with a single, advancing Lombard to second.  A double-steal by both Lombard and Boucher preceded a double by Gauthier that cleared the bases, granting Saint Anselm a 2-0 lead.  The very next batter, catcher Lauren Galavotti (Marion, Mass.), drove in Gauthier to extend the Hawks lead to three runs.  A groundout by third baseman Hannah Byrne (Lynn, Mass.) advanced Galavotti to third base and a passed ball by Belanger plated Galavotti for the fourth run of the inning.

In the home half of the fifth inning, Belanger swatted the first pitch of the at-bat from Saint Anselm pitcher Shannon Dalton (Concord, Mass.) over the fence for the lone Yellow Jackets run of the contest. 

Dalton (1-2) earned her first victory of the season, striking out five Yellow Jackets and allowing only three hits in a complete game.  Dolan (3-7) drew her seventh loss of the year, allowing three earned runs while striking out 10 batters.

NOTABLES: Freshman outfielder Hayley Lombard collected her first collegiate run batted in this afternoon…Left fielder Mary Fay (Stoughton, Mass.) has recorded one hit in each of her last four games…Pitcher Shannon Dalton collected her first victory of the season after throwing a season-high 124 pitches…Shortstop Nicole Boucher is riding a six-game hitting streak, collecting 10 hits in 22 at-bats (.455 batting average)…Boucher has also collected at least one hit in 11 of her last 12 games for Saint Anselm.

Saint Anselm returns to action Tuesday, Apr. 3 as they host the Warriors of Merrimack College in a doubleheader beginning at 3:00 p.m. at the South Athletic Fields.  Stay up to date with the latest news directly from the Saint Anselm College athletic department by joining the Hawks on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/STAHawks) and Twitter (http://www.twitter.com/STAHawks).