WORCESTER, Mass. – Freshmen Megan Murrell (Scarborough, Maine) and Shannon McLaughlin (Tewksbury, Mass.) and junior Michaela Criscione (Franklin, Mass.) each tallied an RBI as the Saint Anselm College softball team broke a scoreless tie in the top of the sixth inning en route to a 3-0 Northeast-10 Championship First Round victory over Assumption College Tuesday afternoon at Marois Field.
The victory, which improves Saint Anselm to 22-11 overall, moves the Hawks into their second straight Northeast-10 Quarterfinal round Thursday afternoon. Saint Anselm, the #4-seed from the Northeast Division, will battle Pace University, #2-seed from the Southwest Division, at tournament host Southern New Hampshire University's Penmen Field.
Assumption finishes its season 21-16 overall.
Tuesday's matchup was a good ol' fashioned pitching duel with both starting hurlers combining to scatter 10 hits over the first five innings, but neither offense could break through.
Senior Tayla Trask (Lincoln, Maine), who was named an All-NE-10 Second Team pitcher earlier in the day, was outstanding in the circle for the Hawks Tuesday afternoon. In her 12th complete game of the season, she gave up just seven hits while recording eight strikeouts and issuing just one walk, improving to 11-4 on the year.
For the Greyhounds, sophomore Kendal Roy took the loss, falling to 11-7 on the year, while giving up two earned runs off 10 hits and a walk.
Both pitchers cruised through the batting orders early, before Saint Anselm threatened in the top of the fourth inning. Junior Second Team All-NE-10 catcher Pattie Turner (Warwick, R.I.) led off with a single through the left side and senior Hannah Byrne (Lynn, Mass.) bunted her to second on the ensuing pitch. Senior Kasey Moran (Medford, Mass.) then pushed one to left to advance Turner to third, but two consecutive pop-outs ended the inning.
Assumption fed off the defensive energy and would load the bases with two outs, before Trask responded with a huge strikeout to leave three 'Hounds stranded.
Saint Anselm got hits from freshman All-NE-10 Third Team and All-Rookie Team outfielder Amanda Bickford (Salem, N.H.), as well as junior All-NE-10 Second Team second baseman Julie LeClair (Taunton, Mass.), but still couldn't break through.
After a 1-2-3 inning for Trask, a leadoff single by Byrne, followed by a Moran sacrifice bunt had the Hawks in business in the sixth. Murrell then took an outside pitch deep in the count to left center that scored Byrne from second, and a hard-hit grounder by McLaughlin got the best of the shortstop as Murrell chugged two bases to score. After freshman Hannah Paitchel (Pelham, N.H.) was walked, Roy was chased from the circle. After inducing a Bickford groundout that advanced each runner a base, Criscione hopped another hot one to short that was misplayed, scoring McLaughlin for an unearned RBI.
The Greyhounds managed two hits in the bottom of the sixth, but a Paitchel-to-Byrne fielder's choice wiped away a runner left on base.
After a quick offensive seventh inning for the Hawks, they entered the home half just three outs away from the victory. A leadoff single dropped just inside the right field line, and after a Trask-issued strikeout, the 'Hounds had two on with one out. A come-backer to Trask in the circle was fielded cleanly and the senior made the huge play, before enticing the Assumption two-hitter into a groundout to Paitchel at short to seal the win.
Offensively, the Hawks once again showed great balance with eight different starters tallying a hit on the afternoon. Moran kept her hot bat alive by going 3-for-3 at the plate with a sacrifice bunt that eventually led to the game-winning run.
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