Softball Falls 3-0 to Emmanuel in Game One, Rallies for 7-6 Win in Game Two

BOSTON, Mass. – The Emmanuel College softball team closed out an eight-game week with a doubleheader split with the Anna Maria College AMCATS at Clemente Field on Sunday. The Saints claimed game one, 3-0, before Anna Maria rebounded for a 7-6 win in game two.

The victory marks just the second time the AMCATS have topped Emmanuel since joining the GNAC in 2012. Anna Maria's last victory was a 5-4 win in 2013 and brings the all-time series to 2-8.

The 1-1 afternoon sends the Saints to 16-13 overall and 8-6 in the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC). The AMCATS now sit at 4-21 and 2-10 in GNAC play.

GAME ONE: EMMANUEL 3, ANNA MARIA 0

Saints ace Jill Kilcoyne (Worcester, Mass.) struck out 12 hitters in a complete game gem. The junior allowed just one hit, while walking three in the shutout victory.

Anna Maria looked to get on the board in the second inning as the first two batters reached with a walk and a single by Marissa Pingeton (Worcester, Mass.). However, Kilcoyne, who struck out the side in the first, bounced back to strike out the next three AMCATS and erase the threat. 

The Saints had two opportunities in the early innings to break the tie with runners in scoring position, but were unable to score either time. Freshman Ashley Skey (Brookline, N.H.) reached second on an error in the second, but was stranded. As was junior captain Susie Kiesleback (Wethersfield, Conn.), who found herself on third base after a fielding blunder by Anna Maria, but never made it home.

 Anna Maria freshman Sabrina Carreira (West Hartford, Conn.) was hit by a pitch to lead off the fifth, and the AMCATS worked her around to third with two sacrifice bunts. But, with two outs, Kilcoyne induced a ground out to second to end the inning.

Emmanuel finally broke things open in the fifth inning, plating three runs on four hits. Senior captain Kerrianne Vulpis (East Rockaway, N.Y.) started the rally off with a one-out double and advanced to third on a wild pitch. Fellow senior captain Cat Davis' (Wethersfield, Conn.) second single of the game drove her in to put the Saints on the board for the first time.

After Davis stole second, sophomore Abbey Alexiades (Kingston, Mass.) knocked a RBI-double to left field to extend the lead to 2-0. Junior Catherine Edmonds (Acton, Mass.) pinch ran for Alexiades and scored from second on a single by Skey to give the Saints a 3-0 that would stand as the final score.

Senior Angela Vousboukis (Swampscott, Mass.) took the loss for the AMCATS, conceding three earned runs and five hits in a solid six-inning outing.

GAME TWO: ANNA MARIA 7, EMMANUEL 6

The Saints wasted no time getting the bats going in game two. The hosts loaded the bases with one out after a Casey Sheehan (Medway, Mass.) double, Alexiades getting hit by a pitch, and a Skey single. Sheehan scored the game's first run on a wild pitch, and three batters later, junior Erin Walsh (Granby, Conn.) doubled home two more runs to open up a 3-0 lead.

A dropped third strike and a fielding error by Kieselback allowed Anna Maria to put two runners into scoring position the following inning, but Olivia Burgos capitalized on a base running error to double up an AMCAT at second base and end the inning.

Skey added to her solid day and to the lead with a solo shot to left centerfield, extending the lead to 4-0.

Anna Maria's first offensive production of the afternoon came in the top of the fourth when senior Elizabeth Haggerty (Charlton, Mass.) led off with a single. The next hitter, freshman Victoria Falco (Marlborough, Mass.), cut the Saints lead in half with a two-run homer to straight away centerfield. Olivia Burgos nearly made a play on the ball, crashing through the fence, but unable to track it down.

The next two batters reached (single, error), setting up senior Brittany Jackson (Larchmont, N.Y.) with a chance to close the deficit. Jackson singled to right field, but Erin Walsh came up firing and cut down freshman Carreira at the plate for the second out. Kieselback induced a line out from the next batter to end the inning with a 4-2 lead.

Burgos replaced Kieselback on the mound in the fifth, ending her day with 4 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, and 4 K.

The AMCATS broke through in the top of the sixth inning with a two-out rally, scoring five runs on six hits to jump ahead 7-4. Falco, Carreira, Jackson, and Kayla Magierowski (Spencer, Mass.) all singled, producing two runs to tie the game at 4. Next, Amanda Lemire (Methuen, Mass.) stepped into the box with the bases loaded and drilled a single to left field that was out of the reach of Kieselback. All three runners scored on the play for the visitors.

The Saints got one back in the bottom of the sixth, as Walsh took first base after being hit by a pitch. Walsh stole second, advanced to third on a wild pitch, and then scored on a RBI single by Burgos. That was all the Saints would produce in the inning and they headed to the seventh in a two-run hole.

Skey added to her huge day in the seventh, leading off the inning with a rocket to center field that cleared the fence for her second HR of the game. The 7-6 deficit was as close as the Saints would get, as Anna Maria freshman pitcher Ally Hamelin (Deerfield, Mass.) settled down to record three straight outs to end it.

Hamelin earned the complete game victory for Anna Maria. She scattered nine hits and six earned runs while tallying one walk and one strikeout. Burgos was tasked with the loss for the Saints, allowing five earned runs and six hits in just 1.2 innings.

Skey finished 4-for-7 for the afternoon, with three RBI, three runs scored, and two homeruns. Davis extended her hitting streak to 15 straight games with singles in both games. Walsh was solid in game two, scoring a run and driving in a pair, while also stealing a base.

For Anna Maria, Carreira, Falco, and Jackson all had a pair of hits in the second game, combining for four runs and three RBI. 

WHAT'S NEXT

Next up for the Saints is a GNAC doubleheader at Clemente on Saturday, April 23, as Saint Joseph's (ME) visits on senior day. The AMCATS head to Albertus Magnus on Wednesday for a doubleheader beginning at 3:00 p.m.