BEVERLY, Mass. — The Endicott softball team earned a hard-fought doubleheader sweep against the Eastern Nazarene Lions Monday afternoon at the Softball Complex in Gulls' final home games of the regular season.
GAME ONE: ENDICOTT 4, EASTERN NAZARENE 0
A four-run fourth inning and timely defense was all the Gulls needed en route to freshman pitcher Michaela Hamill's (Lynn, Mass.) complete-game shutout and eighth win of the season (8-1).
Endicott did all of its damage with two outs in the frame as junior shortstop Kayla Sheldon's (Burlington, Mass.) bunt single wreaked havoc and enabled sophomore left fielder KK Palmerino (Glenmont, N.Y.) to score from second after inducing a throwing error after Sheldon was already safe at the bag.
Then, senior third baseman Lindsee Allienello (East Providence, R.I.) cracked a single to deep left field and an ensuing misplayed ball on the play plated Sheldon, followed by senior right fielder Julia McNeill (Smithtown, N.Y.) and junior catcher Emily Sharpe's (South Glens Falls, N.Y.) back-to-back RBI singles roped to the outfield to provide all the run support the Gulls would need.
GAME TWO: ENDICOTT 9, EASTERN NAZARENE 5
Eastern Nazarene got on the board first with a three-run bomb from sophomore catcher Lauren Clements (Garrison, Texas) in the third inning.
After the retirement nine of the first 10 Gulls' batters faced, senior right fielder Julia McNeill (Smithtown, N.Y.) broke up freshman Elisabeth Schaffer's (Benton, Pa.) no-hit bid in the fourth inning with a leadoff home run over the fence in left center field to cut the deficit to 3-1.
The Gulls then tacked on eight more runs as Endicott sent 12 batters to the plate in the inning and every student-athlete except one in the lineup scored at least one run in the frame to help the comeback cause, highlighted by McNeill's second blast of the inning.
Sophomore starter Laura Somerville (Suffield, Conn.) made her no-decision exit with two outs in the fourth inning after sophomore third baseman Lauren Weidler (Lansdale, Pa.) brought the Lions within four runs with her two-run towering shot to left center.
Junior Mikaela Mallozzi (Shelton, Conn.) went on to earn the win (3-2) in relief by escaping several jams to pitch effectively over the course of the final 3 1/3 scoreless innings by scattering three hits with one free pass and one punchout.
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- All 13 of the Gulls' runs today were scored in the fourth inning between the two games combined.
- Hamill now has tossed seven complete games this season and earned her team-best fourth shutout of the year of the team's six overall.
- McNeill's notched her way into the NCAA DIII record book with two home runs in the same inning, marking the first time since the 2012 season that this feat occurred as she became the 12th student-athlete in the nation across NCAA DIII to ever homer twice in the same inning.
- McNeill now has four career dingers, as this pair was her first and second roundtrippers of the year.
- Endicott recorded nine runs on nine hits and zero errors in the fourth inning of Game 2, including five consecutive at-bats resulting in base hits.
FOR THE FOES
- The Lions received home runs from Lauren Party of Two (Clements and Weidler), their sixth and fourth home runs on the season, respectively.
- Junior pitcher Heidi Gomez (Floral Park, N.Y.) was tagged with the loss (7-8) in Game 1 as she allowed four runs (three earned) on 10 hits, walked one and struck out two in 3 2/3 innings of work.
- Schaffer was handed the loss in Game 2 (11-9) as she was roughed up for six runs (all earned) on six hits with one walk in 3 1/3 innings in the circle to begin the game.
- Freshman center fielder Kayleen Garrick (Sparks, Nev.) and Weidler each went 3-for-4 in Game 2 to lead the Lions at the plate.
- Eastern Nazarene has lost four games in a row, both by sweeps on back-to-back days.
NOTES
- Endicott actually served as the "away" team in this contest as these games were rescheduled from Saturday, April 22, 2017 in Quincy, Mass.
- The Gulls are 32-1 all-time dating back to to April 19, 2001.
- Endicott has won 13 straight games in this series, with the most recent victories before today being a doubleheader sweep (3-0, 8-0 [6 inn.]) on April 15, 2016 in Beverly, Mass.
WHAT'S NEXT
Endicott (20-14, 11-7 CCC) travels to Medford, Mass. to take on host Tufts University on Wednesday, April 26th at 3:00/6:00 p.m. if the weather permits.
Eastern Nazarene (19-18, 5-13 CCC) concluded the regular season today and will wait for the Commonwealth Coast Conference postseason bracket to be released. For the latest on Endicott Athletics, follow the Gulls on social media on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.
(Photo Credit — Matt Connelly)
