Game Two Walk-off Win Highlights Western New England’s Sweep of Gordon

Golden Bears extend winning streak to six games

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (April 5, 2018) – The Western New England University softball team climbed above .500 for the first time this season with a pair of wins over Gordon College on Thursday afternoon in Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) action at Golden Bear Park.

Western New England held off the Fighting Scots 4-2 in the opener, before walking off with a 7-6 triumph in the nightcap.

Western New England 4, Gordon 2

Top Performers
• Senior Jenn Luba (Plymouth, Conn.) provided the big hit in game one, as her three-run home run in the first inning proved to be the difference in the contest.
• Freshman Cassidy Howe (North Andover, Mass.) went 1-for-3 with one RBI and one run scored, while sophomore Aimee Kistner (Taunton, Mass.) walked twice and scored a run.
• Sophomore Paige Uliase (Meriden, Conn.) struck out seven batters and allowed two unearned runs over 6.2 innings to improve to 4-3 this season, before Kistner came on to get the final out and earn her second save.

• Gordon senior Sarah Ryder (Telford, Pa.) went 1-for-3 with one RBI, while junior Rose Shannon (Ashland, Mass.) and freshman Karissa Hatchell (Eaton, Colo.) both doubled for the Fighting Scots.

Game Review
Luba gave the Golden Bears an early lead with her two-out, three-run home run to right field in the bottom of the first inning.

Neither team scored over the next three frames, before Western New England claimed a 4-0 advantage in the fifth on a two-out RBI single by Howe.

Uliase retired two of the first three batters she faced in the seventh inning, but the Fighting Scots rallied with RBI hits from Ryder and Hatchell to cut their deficit in half (4-2),

After Uliase loaded the bases with a walk and hit by pitch, Kistner came on in relief and induced the game-ending groundout to seal the win for the Golden Bears.

Western New England 7, Gordon 6

Top Performers
• Kistner led the Western New England offense in game two, going 3-for-4 at the plate with a home run, two RBI and two runs scored.
• Luba, Howe and senior Lindsay Williams (Coventry, Conn.) contributed two hits each for the Golden Bears.

• Freshman Arianna Ramsaran (Johnson City, Tenn.) paced the Fighting Scots, as she went 3-for-4 with a home run and four RBI.
• Junior Megan Jenkerson (McDonough, Ga.) turned in a 2-for-3 effort with a walk, a double, a home run, and three runs scored.

Game Review
Ramsaran put the Fighting Scots ahead early with her three-run homer in the top of the first inning, but Kistner hit a two-run shot of her own in the bottom half of the frame to cut Western New England's deficit to one. 

Jenkerson went deep with a solo homer in the top of the third to restore Gordon's two-run advantage (4-2).

Western New England pulled even in the third with two runs on an RBI groundout by Uliase, and a RBI double off the bat of Howe.

Ramsaran struck again with an RBI single in the top of the fifth, and sophomore Caitlin Catalanotto (Kingston, N.H.) gave the Fighting Scots an insurance run with an RBI single in the seventh.

Trailing 6-4 heading into the bottom of the seventh, the Golden Bears put together a game-winning rally to complete the sweep.  

Kistner led off with an infield single, but the next two batters were retired. Sophomore Tori Fisher (Poestenkill, N.Y.) kept the rally alive with another infield single, and junior Giovanna Russo (East Haven, Conn.) walked to load the bases.

After senior Jen Zazzarino (Hopewell Junction, N.Y.) worked another walk to score a run, Williams beat out an infield single and a Gordon error allowed the game-winning run to score from second base. 

Up Next
Western New England (8-6, 4-0 CCC) will look to keep rolling at Eastern Nazarene on Saturday, while Gordon (5-12, 1-3 CCC) returns home to host Nichols.