Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2 GAME 1 BOX SCORE | GAME 2 BOX SCORE
When and Where: March 19, 2016 – West Haven, Conn. (UNH Softball Field)
Scores: Game 1: University of New Haven 3, No. 20 Southern New Hampshire University 2 (11 innings) | Game 2: No. 20 Southern New Hampshire University 3, University of New Haven 0
Records: SNHU 7-5 (1-1 Northeast-10), UNH 9-3 (1-1 Northeast-10)
Sophomore Katie Horiuchi (Livingston, N.J.) reached base four times, scored three runs and drove in a pair, while junior Nicole Gubellini (Salem, N.H.) tossed seven shutout innings in game two to help the No. 20 Southern New Hampshire University softball team open Northeast-10 Conference play with a doubleheader split against the University of New Haven. The Penmen dropped game one to the Chargers, 3-2, in 11 innings before cruising to a 3-0 win in game two.
Horiuchi finished 2-for-5 in the two-game set with a double, two walks and a sacrifice to go along with three runs scored and an RBI. Gubellini picked up her second win of the season for Southern New Hampshire after striking out two and allowing three hits and three walks in a complete-game effort.
After Gubellini set down the side in order during the bottom of the first, the Penmen plated all-three runs in the top half of the second inning. Sophomore Sarah Lavallee (Candia, N.H.) reached on an error to lead things off before classmate Brittany Perdigao (Stoughton, Mass.) tagged a single through the middle to put runners on first and second. Junior Jessica Torsiello (Morris Plains, N.J.) advanced the runners with a sacrifice bunt, and two batters later, Horiuchi sent a base hit up the middle that scored Lavallee and an error allowed Perdigao to cruise around from second. Senior Mo Hannan (Scarborough, Maine) stepped in next and laced a single through the right side that brought in Horiuchi from second and gave Gubellini all the run support she would need.
The sophomore right-hander was in command for the majority of the contest, as she allowed just two baserunners to advance past second base. After the Penmen built their 3-0 lead, Gubellini sat down nine of the next 11 batters and allowed just a single and a walk during that stretch. She worked around a leadoff double in the home half of the fifth by recording a strikeout and a fly out on the ensuing two batters. A two-out single put runners on the corners in the frame, but Gubellini bore down and retired the next hitter on a fly ball to center
New Haven's best chance on offense came in the bottom of the sixth inning when it loaded the bases with one away. Sierra Whitlock walked to start the frame before Tori Schiebe was hit by a pitch two batters later. After Kristine Lipstack walked to bring the go-ahead run to the plate, Gubellini induced a pair of infield popups to keep the shutout and three-run lead in tact.
Hannan was 2-for-3 against the Chargers in game two with a walk and an RBI to lead the Southern New Hampshire offense. Gubellini chipped in with the bat as well, as she smacked a double, and Perdigao joined freshman Erin Garczynski (Norwood, Mass.) with a hit apiece.
Game one was a back-and-forth contest that remained scoreless until the top of the fifth inning. Lavallee and New Haven starter Nicole King traded zeroes through the first four innings before Horiuchi led off the Penmen fifth with a double to center. After Hannan pushed Horiuchi to third with a sacrifice bunt, senior Lindsey Bolduc (Londonderry, N.H.) reached on an error that allowed Horiuchi to scamper across with the game's first run.
The Chargers wasted little time in responding, as they used their half of the fifth to put two runs on the board. Jen Palase and Whitlock started the inning with back-to-back singles before Lipstack moved them up with a sacrifice bunt. Taylor Luzzi followed with a two-run single to center to push the hosts in front by one at 2-1.
Neither side was able to build upon its score in the sixth, and the Penmen used their final at-bat to knot the score at two. Horiuchi again started the run-scoring rally, this time with a walk, before another sacrifice by Hannan advanced her to second. Two batters later, with two away, Garczynski unloaded a clutch double to centerfield to bring in Horiuchi and send the game into extras.
The game moved into the 11th before New Haven was able to plate the winning run. After the Chargers were able to work out of a bases loaded, nobody out, situation in the top of the frame, they carried the momentum into the bottom half. Madison Derosia started the inning on second and was sacrificed to third. Two batters later, Marissa Colby rifled a two-out single through the left side of the infield to score the game-winner.
Lavallee suffered the setback in the circle for the Penmen despite going the distance and allowing just two earned runs. She scattered 10 hits in 10.2 innings, struck out three and walked three. Garczynski finished the extra-inning affair 2-for-4 with a double, RBI, walk and hit-by-pitch. Hannan was on base three times by virtue of going 1-for-1 with a walk and a hit-by-pitch to go along with three sacrifices.
Notes:
- Southern New Hampshire was narrowly outhit by a 13-11 margin over the course of the twinbill, which includes a 10-5 New Haven advantage in game one. The Chargers also committed four errors in the two-game set, compared to just one for the Penmen.
- SNHU stranded a total of 20 base runners on Saturday, 15 of which came in game one. The Penmen left seven runners on base during extra innings during the game one setback, while New Haven left two on during innings seven through 11 and a total of nine during the opening contest.
- Gubellini and Lavallee combined to throw strikes on 62-percent of their pitches (139-of-223) while Chargers' pitchers Nicole King and Victoria Cabral managed strikes on 57-percent of their pitches (172-of-301).
What's Next:
The Penmen are off until Thursday (March 24) when they make the trip to Waterbury, Connecticut for a nonconference doubleheader against Post University slated to begin at 2 p.m.
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