Lyons split non-conference doubleheader at local foe Bridgewater State

April 2, 2008

BRIDGEWATER, MA- The Wheaton College softball team split a non-conference doubleheader at Bridgewater State College's Alumni Park on Wednesday, taking game one by a 7-1 count before dropping the nightcap, 6-0. The Lyons slipped to 17-5, while the Bears ended a five-contest losing streak with the win and pushed their record to 6-10.

During the opener, the Lyons jumped on the board first thanks to freshman Rachel Merrick's (Methuen, MA/Central Catholic) two-out RBI single in the opening frame, but the Bears knotted the game in the second on junior Rachael Sprague's (Duxbury, MA/Duxbury) solo home run. Thanks to four hits and two errors, Wheaton plated four third-inning runs to go on top for good. Freshman Nicole DeRosa (Greenwich, CT/Greenwich Academy) had an RBI double in the frame, while senior Erika Marini (Pawtucket, RI/Saint Raphael Academy) added a run-scoring single. DeRosa smacked another RBI double in the fifth, while Marini capped the scoring with a run-scoring two-bagger in the seventh.

Senior hurler Jodi Moynagh (Worcester, MA/Holy Name Central Catholic) pitched around base runners for much of the contest, as she yielded five hits while striking out 10 and walking two in improving to 9-1 on the year. After the Bears put two on with one out in the first, the next five Bridgewater State outs were Moynagh strikeouts. The hosts did not sustain another threat despite putting at least one runner on base in every inning but the seventh.

Marini led the Lyons by going 3-for-4 with two runs and two RBI, while senior Audrey Poulton (Charlestown, RI/Chariho Regional) went 3-for-4 with two runs. DeRosa had two hits and a pair of RBI, while junior Brady Benton (Concord, NH/Concord) added two hits and scored twice.

Junior Allie LeBlanc (Somerset, MA/Somerset) had two hits for the Bears, while sophomore southpaw Jillian Vancelette (Charlton City, MA/Whitinsville Christian) took the loss after yielding six runs, five earned, on eight hits in 4.1 innings.

In the second game, Bridgewater State scored three times in the third inning for the only offense it would need. The hosts tacked on one run in the fourth and two more in the sixth.

Marini and senior Alix Brozman (Chappaqua, NY/Horace Greeley) each had two hits to pace Wheaton, with Brozman tripling, but the Lyons left seven runners on base, including four in scoring position. Freshman Courteney Collier (Bolton, MA/Nashoba Regional) suffered her first collegiate loss in four decisions, allowing four runs on nine hits in three-plus innings. Sophomore Andrea Bagley (Foxboro, MA/Foxboro) yielded two runs on four hits with two strikeouts in the final three frames.

LeBlanc had three hits and three RBI for the Bears, while senior Danielle Trull-Donahue (Stoughton, MA/Stoughton) added three hits and two runs. Junior Alyssa Verronneau (Acushnet, MA/New Bedford) struck out three during her complete-game seven-hitter.

The Lyons finish off an eight-game road trip with a New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) doubleheader tomorrow at Babson College. The twinbill, which had initially been scheduled for Friday, is slated to begin at 3:00 p.m.

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