Softball Clinches Top Seed with MASCAC Sweep of Fitchburg

Game One Box Score | Game Two Box Score

FITCHBURG, Mass. -- Bridgewater State College came to Fitchburg State College and swept the Falcons, 6-0, 9-2, on Patriots Day in MASCAC softball action at Fitchburg State. 

The Bears improved to 20-14 overall and stayed perfect in the MASCAC with a 12-0 record.  BSC clinched the top seed for next week's conference tournament. Fitchburg dropped to 10-19 on the season and 5-7 in the MASCAC.

The Bears got a great pitching performance from Alyssa Verranneau in Game One, striking out 15 Falcons in a complete-game seven-hit shutout. Fitchburg starter Bethany Stone (7.0 IP, 9 H, 6 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 5 K) matched her counterpart in the circle for the first four frames.

Bridgewater scored in each of the last three innings to get the victory. Tracey Sanko and Nicole Hebert delivered RBI singles and Rachael Sprague plated another after a pop up to second base for a 3-0 BSC lead after five innings. Stacy Capodiece hit a two-run single in the sixth and Noyes singled and scored on a wild pitch in the seventh.

Hitters two through four gave the Falcons fits. No. 2 Sanko went 2-for-3 with an RBI, Hebert was 2-for-4 with an RBI and Noyes went 2-for-3. All three scored one run apiece as well.

The Falcons got strong production from the top of the lineup as Lauren Cucinotta and Leigh Trzcinski each had two hits.

The Bears broke Game Two open in the fifth, scoring five runs on three hits that turned 2-2 game into a 7-2 Bridgewater cushion. Capodiece did the majority of the damage in the BSC fifth, hitting a two-run single that plated another after a throwing error while Ciana Godin had an RBI single.

BSC would tack on a pair of insurance runs in the seventh, capitalizing on an error and a wild pitch with two outs for the 9-2 victory.

The teams traded runs in the first inning as Hebert knocked in a run on a single and Cucinotta tripled and scored on a wild pitch. Hebert then scored on a fielder's interference play in the third and Fitchburg tied the game at 3-3 in the fourth Cucinotta delivered an RBI single to left centerfield.

Jamie Ducinski was credited with the win after coming on in relief with one out in the first inning. She allowed one run - unearned - on five hits and fanned eight.

Hebert led the Bears offensively, going 3-for-5 with an RBI, while Godin (2-for-3, RBI) and Capodiece (2-for-4, 2 RBI) also paced the offense.

Cucinotta was 3-for-4 with an RBI for the Falcons while Jesse Krause and Meghan Callahan went 2-for-4 in the defeat.