Softball Takes One of Two From Wheelock
NEW LONDON, Conn. – The Mitchell College softball team split a New England Collegiate Conference doubleheader with Wheelock College on Tuesday afternoon at Alumni Field.
The Mariners (7-21 overall, 6-8 NECC) pounded out 14 hits in the opener to post a 10-1 victory in five innings. Shannon O'Neil went 3-for-3 at the plate while Samantha DelConte finished with two hits and ended the game with a two-run homer.
The Wildcats (5-19 overall, 4-12 NECC) made the most of three hits in the nightcap to bounce back for a 4-2 win. Shannon Creedon and Rachael Simpson each homered in the game while starting pitcher Emma Spencer kept Mitchell's hitters in check.
Mitchell will next host Daniel Webster College for a doubleheader on Wednesday, April 20 at 3 p.m. Wheelock returns to action at Massachusetts Maritime Academy on Thursday, April 21 at 3:30 p.m.
Game 1 – Mitchell 10, Wheelock 1 (5 innings)
Mitchell sent nine batters to the plate in the first inning and jumped out to a 4-0 lead. Brittany Fiederlein knocked in the first run with a double off the fence in center. Jenny Groman brought home the next run with a sac fly to center, and back-to-back RBI singles from Taylor Duschesneau and Jacquelyn White completed the rally.
The Mariners tacked on two more runs in the second on the strength of a two-run double by O'Neil. Wheelock then put a run on the board in the fourth to cut the deficit to 6-1. Katie Fleming drew a one-out walk and later scored from third base on a ground out by Kierstan Cosgrove.
Mitchell ended the game early with four runs in the bottom of the fifth, scoring all four batters who stepped to the plate. Janelle Rice plated a run with a single and then scored on a double by Suzanne Vachon. DelConte ended the game with a two-run, walk-off blast over the left field fence, her first homer of the season.
Fiederlein (7-12 overall) gave up one run on four hits and struck out seven over 5.0 innings.
Game 2 – Wheelock 4, Mitchell 2
Wheelock struck for three quick runs in the opening frame of the second game. After a Mitchell fielding error extended the inning and put two runners on base, Creedon connected for a three-run home run down the left field line, her second of the season.
Mitchell plated a run in the second on an RBI single by Rice but gave it right back in the third, as Simpson led off with a solo homer to left—the first of her career—to put Wheelock up 4-1. Fiederlein then took the ball in relief for the Mariners and retired the next three batters to close out the frame.
Mitchell picked up a run in the sixth to cut into the deficit. Duchesneau doubled down the right field line and later scored on a single by White to make it a 4-2 game.
Fiederlein allowed only one hit in 5.0 scoreless innings to give Mitchell a chance to get back into the game. However, Spencer was equally up to the task, stranding a total of seven runners in the contest and setting down the side in order in the seventh to secure the win. She scattered seven hits in 7.0 innings of work and allowed just the two runs to improve to 5-12.