GAME 1 BOX     GAME 2 BOX

COLCHESTER, Vt. – The Southern New Hampshire University softball team swept both ends of a Northeast-10 softball doubleheader from Saint Michael's College, posting 1-0 and 9-4 victories Friday afternoon.  The Penmen improve to 18-18 overall and 15-11 in the NE-10, while the Purple Knights are 8-28 and 3-23 in the league.

With the sweep, the Penmen move into a three-way tie for fifth place in the NE-10 with Adelphi and Assumption.  Southern New Hampshire closes out the regular season by hosting the top two teams currently in the standings, as it host second-place Southern Connecticut in a night doubleheader starting at 6:00 Saturday.  The Penmen host league-leading New Haven on Sunday.

In the opener, the Penmen grabbed the game's lone run with the second batter of the game as junior Elena Anderson (Salem, Wis.) belted a solo home run.  It marked Anderson's fourth home run of the season.

Saint Michael's would get the tying run to third in the bottom of the seventh as Kelly Egan led off the inning with a double and moved to third on a sacrifice by Lindsay Bernard.  SNHU starter Kelsey Griffin (Scarborough, Maine) would get Kelly Losi to ground back to the pitcher and Kate Condon to strike out swining to end the game.

Griffin picked up the win, allowing just three hits while fanning three.  She retired the first 11 Purple Knight batters before her perfect game was broke up by Meghan Coletti's single.  Stephanie Frank was the hard-luck loser for the hosts, scattering six hits and striking out six without issuing a walk.

In the nightcap, the Penmen opened up a 4-0 lead after one inning as they banged out five hits while also taking advantage of two errors and a hit by pitch.  Kate Stanley (Kingston, Mass.) made it 5-0 in the second with her home run, her 12^th of the season.

SNHU tacked on four runs in the third to take a 9-0 lead.  Melissa Vitagliano (Bedford, N.H.) belted a solo home run with one out, then two batters later, Andrea Clausi (Kingston, N.Y.) hit a two-run blast that also scored Melissa Pessotti (Burlington, Mass.).  The home run was the 22^nd of Clausi's career, making her SNHU's all-time home run leader.  Anderson would drive in the other run when her double plated Nicole Newell (Abington, Mass.).

Saint Michael's scored twice in the third on a two-run single by Losi, while a two-run home run by Collitti made it 9-4 in the fifth.

Clausi led the Penmen with three hits in the nightcap, while Stanley, Anderson, Vitagliano and Pessotti finished with two hits apiece as SNHU outhit Saint Michael's 13-8.  Bernard led the Purple Knights with a pair of hits.

Jen Garloff (Lebanon, Pa.) earned the win for Southern New Hampshire, going the distance and surrendering eight hits.  Frank took the loss for SMC, working five innings and allowing eight hits and four runs, as she started the game and later relieved Egan.