Softball Swept by Lesley

NEW LONDON, Conn. – Lesley University came away with a doubleheader sweep of the Mitchell College softball team on Saturday afternoon in New England Collegiate Conference action at Alumni Field.

The Lynx (4-8 overall, 2-0 NECC) needed extra innings to pull out a 7-4 victory in the opener before shutting down the Mariners 7-0 in the second game.

Mitchell (4-12 overall, 1-3 NECC) will next play at Fitchburg State on Wednesday, April 3 at 3 p.m. Lesley returns to action at home against Plymouth State on Tuesday, April 2 at 3:30 p.m.

Game 1 – Lesley 7, Mitchell 4 (8 innings)

Angela Mukai led off the second inning with a solo homer to left—her first of the season—to put Lesley on top 1-0. However, Mitchell answered with a run in the home half of the frame to tie the game. Sophomore Dylan Riccardi led off with a double down the left field line and, after moving to third on a sacrifice, scored on a single up the middle by senior Meghan Burke.

The Lynx answered right back in the third to put another run on the board. Emily Mangiaratti got things started with a one-out triple to left and scored on a single up the middle by Molly Sarson. Lesley then loaded the bases with only one out, but freshman pitcher Kaisea Caramante worked her way out of the jam without allowing any more damage.

Lesley added single runs in both the fourth and fifth innings to increase its lead to 4-1. Maria Nazzaro delivered an RBI single in the fourth that plated Sydney Thayer, and Allison Fountain drove in Sarson with a double in the fifth.

Mitchell clawed back into the game with a three-run fifth inning. Freshman Bridget Thomson started the rally with a one-out double off the left field fence and scored on a single up the middle by senior Tiffany Person. Later, with runners at second and third with two outs, sophomore Lindsey Romagnino lined a shot up the middle to clear the bases and tied the game at 4-4.

The Lynx threatened in the sixth, putting a runner at third with only one out. However, reliever Tricia Tomaselli got a strike out and ground out to get out of trouble. Lesley starter Nicole Mercurio did the same in the bottom of the inning. After Mitchell put its leadoff batter on second, Mercurio got a pair of pop-ups and a strikeout to strand the runner.

Each team put a runner on in the seventh but failed to push across the go-ahead run. The game moved into extra innings with the international tiebreaker rule in place.

In the eighth, Lesley sacrificed its runner to third base before Thayer brought the run home with a grounder just out of the reach of Mitchell's third baseman. Sarah Apgar then followed with an RBI triple to deep center and later scored on a wild pitch to make it 7-4.

Mitchell got the tying run to the plate in the eighth but could do no more. Mercurio retired the next three batters in order to improve to 2-2 on the season. She worked 8.0 innings and allowed four runs on seven hits while striking out eight and walking four.

Tomaselli (3-7 overall) took the loss for the Mariners. She pitched 4.0 innings of relief and allowed four runs (two earned) on five hits and struck out three. Caramante threw 4.0 innings and gave up three runs (two earned) on six hits while striking out three.

Game 2 – Lesley 7, Mitchell 0

A strong pitching performance from Jordan Thomas was the key for Lesley in the second game. The left-hander tossed a complete game shutout, scattered four hits and struck out three to earn her first win of the season.

Lesley went on top 1-0 in the second inning and never looked back. Mercurio led off the frame with a walk and later scored on an RBI single by Apgar. The Lynx then tacked on two more runs in the third on a two-run double by Mukai to make it 3-0.

The Lynx padded their lead with a three-run sixth inning, courtesy of a pair of walks, a wild pitch, three Mitchell errors and a sacrifice fly by Mukai. Lesley then tacked on a run in the seventh when Apgar led off with a single and later scored on a base hit by Nazzaro.

Caramante took the loss for the Mariners, yielding three runs on six hits through 3.0 innings. She dropped to 1-4 overall on the season.