BRISTOL, R.I. – The second-seeded Roger Williams University Softball team picked up a 6-1 win over #3 Western New England in the team's first game in the double elimination phase of the Commonwealth Coast Conference Softball Championship Monday afternoon.
Western New England earned its way to the game against RWU via a 3-1 win over #6 Curry College in the opener.
In RWU's game, the Hawks grabbed a quick 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first. Delaney Burns (Suffield, Conn.) hit a dribbler that made its slowly made its way between the shortstop and third baseman to bring in Chelsea Boulrisse (Bourne, Mass.) and Lauren Tierney (Middleboro, Mass.).
The Hawks added another run in the fourth, when Caroline Atkinson (Milford, Mass.) scored from second on a heads-up play after a muffed toss to first base from the circle.
Western New England had trouble getting anything going offensively, mustering only two hits through the first four innings. The Golden Bears were finally able to break through in the fifth, with Jeana Longo (Schenectady, N.Y.) hit an RBI single to score Grace Kucharski (Avon, Conn.) and pull within two.
Yet the Hawks answered with three in the fifth, with Alana Peoples (Scarborough, Maine) launching a three-run home run to left and double RWU's score. The five-run lead would ultimately hold for RWU.
Meghan Maliga (Suffield, Conn.) went the distance for RWU, allowing one run in seven innings of work with five strikeouts. Boulrisse and Veronica Alicea (Trumbull, Conn.) each finished 2-for-4 with a run. Burns was 2-for-3 with a run and two RBI while Peoples went 2-for-3 with three RBI and a run.
Heidi Grieger (Hyde Park, N.Y.) took the loss, giving up six runs (five earned) in 4.1 innings. Kucharski finished 2-for-3 with a run, while Longo was 1-for-2 with an RBI.
In the first game of the day, Curry and Western New England were locked into pitchers' duels early on. Lauren Zambrano (Wallingford, Conn.) struck out five batters in a row for the Golden Bears after a leadoff walk to start the game, while Curry's Taylor Ahearn (Salem, Mass.) retired the first five of the contest.
Curry struck first in the fourth, beginning with a leadoff double by Ariel LaRosa (Saugus, Mass.). After being sacrificed over to third, she came in on a misplayed ball at first to give the Colonels a 1-0 lead.
Curry's lead would not last long, as the Golden Bears plated three runs in the bottom of the inning. Kucharski tied the game with an RBI single, while Katie Eckert (Lee, Mass.) scored Kucharski and Emily Mastropaolo (Cazenovia, N.Y.) with a two-RBI hit just out of the reach of short.
Western New England's two-run lead held up, as Zambrano only allowed two baserunners over the final three innings to earn the win. She gave up only three hits while striking out 13. Offensively, Eckert was 2-for-3 with two RBI, while Kucharski, Mastropaolo, and Samantha Mulhern (Worcester, Mass.) were each 1-for-3 with a run.
Ahearn took the loss for Curry, tagged for three runs in six innings. Heather Carrier (Scarborough, Maine) was 2-for-2, while LaRosa was 1-for-3 with a run.
Roger Williams (21-18) will travel to Mass. on Thursday to take on top-seeded Endicott, who defeated #5 Salve Regina 9-0 (6) earlier today. In the elimination bracket, Curry (23-17) faces Salve Regina while Western New England (24-17) plays #4 University of New England, who fell 2-3 to Salve Regina.
