MANCHESTER, N.H. – The nationally-ranked Saint Anselm College softball team capped off the regular season with two victories over Stonehill College on Saturday, capturing the Northeast Division Regular Season Championship on Senior Day.
The Hawks won by scores of 10-0 (five innings) and 4-1, claiming the team's third consecutive regular season title. With an overall record of 24-4 and a mark of 21-3 against NE10 opponents, Saint Anselm has secured the division's No. 1 seed in the upcoming NE10 postseason - the Hawks have earned a bye and will return to action Thursday, May 6 against an opponent to be determined. The final bracket will be finalized on Sunday, May 2 once all contests are completed.
Saint Anselm, the 19th-ranked team in Division II, have won eight in a row while the Skyhawks fall to 5-23 on the year. Before Stonehill pushed across a sixth-inning run in game two, Saint Anselm had thrown 32 consecutive innings of scoreless softball, the longest streak in team history.
The bats were back at it for the Hawks, scoring seven first-inning runs in game one, helping the Hawks cruise to a 10-0 victory. Senior
Lauren Washburn (Carmichael, Calif.) and sophomore
Kylie Fitzpatrick (Danville, N.H.) each brought in three runs in the game.
Senior
Morgan Perry (Bethany, Conn.) threw three innings in game one, surrendering two hits while striking out eight batters. Sophomore
McKenna Smith (Old Town, Maine) replaced Perry in the fourth, finishing the game with three strikeouts and no hits allowed over the final two innings.
The Hawks took control early in game two, distancing themselves from the Skyhawks with a 3-0 lead through three innings. Saint Anselm did not let Stonehill mount a comeback, allowing just one run in the sixth inning to hold onto the victory. Senior
Courtney Fisher (Taunton, Mass.) threw a complete game, striking out four batters and allowed five hits.
Prior to the first contest, the Hawks celebrated their eight senior student-athletes during a pre-game ceremony.
GAME ONE: No. 19 Saint Anselm 10, Stonehill 0 - 5 inn. (Box Score)
The Hawks went straight to work in the first inning, getting out of the gate with a five-hit, seven-run inning. Washburn started with a single to right center, allowing Fitzpatrick and senior
Shannon Colson (Rochester, N.H.) to score. While senior
Kat Stackrow (Wyantskill, N.Y.) stole second, the Skyhawks catcher threw it into the outfield, allowing junior
Bre Klaiber (Ironton, Ohio) to come home.
After two singles by the Hawks, putting runners on all bases, senior
Beanie Luttig (Kennard, Neb.) drew a walk for Stackrow to walk home, giving the Hawks a 4-0 advantage. Senior
Erin Thompson (Newton, N.H.) kept the bats going, knocking a single to left field that scored two runners in the process. Fitzpatrick finished off the first inning with a single up the middle to send Luttig home.
In the third, Washburn increased the Hawks advantage to an eight-run margin with a sacrifice fly, scoring Colson from third. Fitzpatrick drove in two runs in the fourth to extend the Hawks lead and secure the win.
Fitzpatrick, Thompson, and freshman
Gracie O'Hara (Shrewsbury, Mass.) each had a team-high two hits.
GAME TWO: No. 19 Saint Anselm 4, Stonehill 1 (Box Score)
The Hawks got on the board early in the first inning of game two with a Stackrow walk with the bases loaded, allowing Colson to walk home. Later, senior
Abbie Murrell (Scarborough, Maine) drove in one run off a single to left field.
After a Murrell double in the bottom of the third, junior
Bailey Cain (Wellington, Fla.) followed suit with one of her own, driving in Murrell. In the next inning, Washburn lined a single to right field that scored Fitzpatrick, creating a 4-0 lead.
Hannah Ricker got the Skyhawks on the board for the first time in the season series as she reached first off an error by the pitcher - the misplay allowed the only Stonehill run to score.
