Softball Swept by Coast Guard

NEW LONDON, Conn. – Mitchell College dropped a pair of non-conference softball games to Coast Guard Academy on Tuesday afternoon, falling by final scores of 8-5 and 11-3.

The Bears (10-6 overall) finished with 30 hits in the doubleheader, with Isabelle Shroyer going 7-for-8 with a double and five RBI to lead the way. Christine Carey chipped in six hits that included a pair of doubles, and Julia Breidenthal contributed five hits and five RBI.

Gemma Landry and Brooke Whitmarsh each supplied three hits to pace the Mariners.

Mitchell (10-12 overall) opens conference play at Lesley University on Friday, April 15 at 3:30 p.m.

Game 1 – Coast Guard 8, Mitchell 5

Coast Guard jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first inning and never looked back. Shroyer plated the first run of the game with a single through the left side of the infield, and Breidenthal followed with a two-run single to right-center.

Mitchell got a run back in the third as singles by Landry and Jenna Bennett put runners on base. Landry moved to third on a ground ball from Whitmarsh and later scored on a ground out by Emily Reynolds.

The Bears padded the lead with three more runs in the fourth. After a sacrifice fly by Mariah Dewey brought home the first run, Kayla Yoshioka Montalvo dialed up a two-run triple to right-center make it 6-1.

An RBI single by Sarah Aviles put another run on the board for the Mariners in the sixth, but Breidenthal slugged a two-run homer in the seventh to give Coast Guard its biggest lead of the contest at 8-2.

Mitchell went down swinging in the bottom of the frame, putting up three runs on three hits before starting pitcher Amanda Moore recorded the final out. Whitmarsh knocked in a run with a single to left, and Emma LaBreck brought her around to score with a double to left-center.

Moore improved to 6-2 with the win, allowing five runs (two earned) on eight hits while striking out four. Reynolds got the starting nod for the Mariners and dropped to 6-5, yielding eight runs on 13 hits.

Game 2 – Coast Guard 11, Mitchell 3 (6 innings)

Shroyer took the ball in the circle for Coast Guard and immediately helped her own cause with an RBI double in the first inning. However, the Mariners hit her up for a pair of runs in the home half, both of which scored on a single up the middle by Sydney Oatway.

Mitchell bumped its lead to 3-1 in the second as Landry hit a two-out double down the left-field line to score Madison Nicynski. In the third, the Bears inched closer as Shroyer plated another run with a single to left. However, the Mariners got the next batter to ground into an inning-ending double play, leaving the 3-2 lead intact.

Mitchell starter Hailey Hill, making her first start of the season, kept Coast Guard off balance until the fifth. The Bears led off the frame with back-to-back doubles from Carey and Dewey, and Shroyer plated them both with a single to center to snatch the lead. Lillia Farlow later doubled in two more runs to give the visitors a 6-3 advantage.

Coast Guard exploded for five more runs in the sixth to put the game out of reach. Montalvo, Carey and Dewey all hit consecutive doubles to jumpstart the rally, and both Breidenthal and Farlow knocked in runs as the lead expanded to 11-3.

Shroyer evened her record at 4-4 on the season and gave up three runs (one earned) on seven hits while striking out five. Hill (0-1 overall) allowed nine runs on 15 hits and struck out one.