Softball Splits Non-Conference Twinbill with UMass Boston

BOSTON, Mass. -- The visiting Bridgewater State University softball team split a non-conference doubleheader with UMass Boston on Saturday afternoon at the UMB Softball Field.

The Bears (7-9) won the first game, 3-1, while the Beacons (5-11) earned the split with a 7-4 victory in the nightcap.

Game One

Sophomore first baseman Shannon Grindle (Halifax, Mass.) belted a three-run homer in the top of the first inning to lift Bridgewater State to the 3-1 victory in game one.

Junior right-hander Mackenzie Holt (Gilroy, Calif.) went the distance in the circle for the Bears to record the complete game victory. Holt allowed just one run on five hits with four walks and four strikeouts.

With one out in the top of the first, Holt got the rally started with a base hit through the left side. After freshman right fielder Alexandra Ruprecht (Kingston, Mass.) reached on an error, Grindle drilled a 1-2 offering over the right-centerfield fence to give the Bears a 3-0 lead. The home run marked Grindle's team-leading fourth of the season.

UMass got on the board with a run in the fourth as freshman DP Tori Dicenso (Lynn, Mass.) worked a bases loaded walk with two outs. Holt avoided any further damage by striking out the next batter.

Holt also worked out of a bases loaded, two-out jam in the sixth inning, and then set down the side in order in the seventh to close out the game.

Grindle reached safely in all three plate appearances as she also walked twice. Junior center fielder Kacie Carvalho (Fairhaven, Mass.) went 1-for-2 with a walk.

UMB sophomore righty Jess Greenspan (Rocky Hill, Conn.) was really strong in the circle after giving up the home run. Greenspan allowed just four total hits and three runs, two earned, while striking out eight batters. After the first inning, she allowed just one hit and five total baserunners.

Junior catcher Roxanne Vento (Arlington, Mass.) led the Beacons with two hits, while Dicenso worked three walks.

Game Two

In game two, UMass struck for seven two-out runs, including six in the first two innings, to knock off the Bears.

Junior centerfielder Taylor Pawlina (Woonsocket, R.I.) was the offensive hero in game two. She finished 3-3 with four RBI and a pair of huge doubles. Dicenso was just as tough, going 2-2 with three runs scored, two RBI, a walk and a double.

Sophomore second baseman Ari Bilotta (Leominster, Mass.) was the final Beacon to finish with multiple hits, as she chipped in two hits and two runs scored.

Sophomore right-hander Megan Hoben (Bedford, Mass.) earned her second-straight win and improved to 3-2. Hoben allowed 13 hits and four earned runs, while striking out four batters.

Holt (2-6) allowed six earned runs in two innings to pick up the loss. Sophomore righty Deianeira Underhill (Rochester, Mass.) came on in relief and allowed just four hits and one run in four innings of work.

Junior DP Rebecca Uschmann (Feeding Hills, Mass.) paced the Bears with three hits in four at-bats, while Grindle chipped in a team-best two RBI. Holt and sophomore shortstop Samantha Mulcahy (Taunton, Mass.) tacked on two hits apiece.

After Hoben stranded a runner in the top of the first, the Beacons jumped on top with three runs in the bottom of the frame with two outs. Holt retired the first two batters, before UMass had the next seven batters reach base. With two on and two outs, Dicenso lofted a pop fly into shallow right-field that found the grass to score Vento and Bilotta. Pawlina followed with a double over the right fielder's head to score Dicenso and make it 3-0. The Beacons would load the bases up, but Holt was able to retire the final batter to leave the bases loaded for a third time in the twinbill.

UMass tacked on three more runs in the second. Vento and Bilotta started the rally with back-to-back singles and Dicenso loaded the bases with a walk. Pawlina blasted a double to right-center field that cleared the bases and made it 6-0.

Bridgewater State cut the deficit in half in the third inning. The Bears loaded the bases with two singles and a walk and Holt made it 6-1 with a single to left field. After an infield fly for the first out, Grindle looped a single to left field to score Carvalho and Mulcahy. With the bases loaded and one out, the Beacons retired the lead runner on a fielder's choice and Hoben induced a groundout to second to end the inning.

UMass added an insurance run in the fourth. Dicenso drove a double down the third base line with two outs and scored on Pawlina's single up the middle.

Underhill cut the deficit to 7-4 in the sixth with an RBI groundout, but that's as close as the Bears would get.

Notes: Carvalho, who went 3-for-5 in the two games with a walk, extended her hitting streak to 11 games....The last player to hit four or more home runs in a season for Bridgewater State was Jennifer Galavotti with six in 2014...The Beacons host Salve Regina University in a non-conference doubleheader on Tuesday afternoon, while the Bears entertain UMass Dartmouth in a non-conference twinbill on Thursday afternoon. Both doubleheaders get underway at 3:00 PM.