GARDEN CITY, N.Y. – The Saint Anselm College softball team lost by a 2-0 margin on Sunday in the Northeast-10 Conference championship game, falling at No. 22 Adelphi on a two-run walk-off home run.
Saint Anselm (28-15), who had beaten Adelphi (41-11) in the last two NE10 postseason championships (2019, 2021), is ranked fifth in the official NCAA Division II rankings that determine tournament eligibility. The NCAA Division II softball selection show is scheduled to air Monday, May 9 at 10 a.m. on NCAA.com.
Sophomore Haile Hicks (Jefferson, N.H.) threw 175 pitches in what was the longest NE10 championship game in league history, going into the 11th inning. She drew the tough-luck loss, dancing around trouble all afternoon as Adelphi left a total of 11 baserunners on base throughout the game – she struck out nine on the afternoon.
Saint Anselm had several chances throughout the afternoon to score a run but could not deliver, leaving four runners on base in extra innings alone. The Hawks stranded multiple runners on base in the fourth, seventh and ninth innings as Adelphi pitching got out of trouble in each instance, keeping the visitors off the scoreboard.
Pitching into the bottom of the 11th inning, Hicks allowed a two-run walk-off home run to Ashley Lombardi, sending Adelphi to its first NE10 title since 2018. The Saint Anselm sophomore had bases-loaded jams in both the bottom of the seventh and eighth innings, keeping Adelphi hitless in three such at-bats.
Hicks and junior Kate Irwin (Milford, Mass.) were named to the NE10 All-Tournament Team for their solid two-game performances for the Hawks in the league postseason. Irwin went 2-for-3 against Assumption on Friday and posted eight putouts for the Hawks on Saturday, taking away what appeared to be a home run for Adelphi with a stellar catch prior to the game going into extras.
The Hawks smacked the first hit of the game as freshman Ava Caputo (Waterford, N.Y.), who entered with four hits on the season against the NE10 Pitcher of the Year, Claire Fon, singled to right field. Senior Bre Klaiber (Ironton, Ohio) later walked on four pitches before the Hawks ended the inning with two runners on, grounding out to third base.
The top of the seventh inning saw sophomore Gracie O'Hara (Shrewsbury, Mass.) work a lead-off walk. Moving to second on a bunt, freshman Stephanie Tardugno (Methuen, Mass.) picked up one of her two hits on the day to place runners on the corner with two outs. The next two batters hit infield ground outs for Saint Anselm, ending the threat.
Adelphi loaded the bases in the bottom of the seventh with two hits and a walk before a fly ball to center field was caught by freshman Audrey Arsenault (Stow, Mass.), keeping the game scoreless and pushing both teams into extra innings.
After Saint Anselm went down one-two-three in the top of the eighth, back-to-back singles and a walk loaded the bases and made Hicks work to get the final two outs. The sophomore stepped up in a big way, striking out the next batter on three pitches before getting a first-pitch fly out to left field for the stanza's third out.
Klaiber led off the top of the ninth inning with a bouncing single up the middle before Tardugno picked up her second hit of the day with two outs, placing runners on first and second. The Hawks flew out to right field to end the inning.
In the next three half-innings, Saint Anselm and Adelphi placed a runner on base in a variety of ways but did not have a baserunner move past second base as both pitchers, Fon and Hicks, stood tall in the circle.
A four-pitch walk and a fielder's choice for Saint Anselm in the top of the 11th chased Font, who yielded to Claire Hibbs in relief. The second arm in what is a solid one-two punch in the rotation for Adelphi did not disappoint, instantly erasing the Hawks rally with back-to-back swinging strikeouts.
Hibbs ended up with the victory in the circle as her team finally found the scoreboard in the home half of the 11th inning. A lead-off single moved up to second as a throwing error instantly placed a runner in scoring position – after a sacrifice bunt moved the runner to third base, a home run to left field by Lombardi ended the game and gave Adelphi its fourth NE10 postseason championship.
Fon fanned just four batters in 10.1 innings of work, throwing 147 pitches while inducing 19 ground outs, most of them weakly hit by the Hawks. Hibbs needed just 11 pitches to earn the victory, striking out each of her two batters for the victory in the circle – she came into the game ranked ninth in NCAA Division II with 253 strikeouts this season.
