THE BASICS 

Game One Score: Emerson 9, WPI 8

Game Two: WPI 9, Emerson 5

Game One Pitching Decision: W - Neely Eddleston (6-0) | L - Katie Martin (2-2)

Game Two Pitching Decision: W - Kelsey Saucier (3-1) | L - Neely Eddleston (6-1)

Records: Emerson Lions (8-2, 1-1 NEWMAC) ; WPI Engineers (10-4, 1-1 NEWMAC) 

Location: Boston, Mass. (Rotch Field)
Date: Saturday, March 24, 2018

The Lead: The Emerson softball team opened its first NEWMAC against the WPI Engineers and came out with the twin-bill split on Saturday afternoon. Sophomore Marisa DeFranco (Falls Church, Va.) paced had a 3-for-5 effort and two RBIs from junior Kallista Leonardos (El Granada, Calif.) in the Lions 9-8 comeback win in game one. In the second game, the Lions were upended by the Engineers in a 9-5 setback. 

GAME ONE: Emerson 9, WPI 8

INSIDE THE NUMBERS 

IN THE BOX 

• DeFranco paced Emerson going 3-for-5 with three runs scored and freshman Lindsey Lowe (Porter Ranch, Calif.) going 2-for-3 with a double and two runs plated. 
• Leonardos finished 2-for-4 and batted a double with a pair of RBIs, while senior Molly Goldstein (Ridgefield, Conn.) and senior Jacqueline DeFusco (East Greenwich, R.I.) also tallied one RBI each.
• On the bags, sophomore Micaela Dix (White House Station, N.J.) and junior Caroline Fortuna (Higganum, Conn.) scored one base each. 
• For WPI, Marissa Gonzales led at the plate with a 3-for-4 effort with two runs scored, one triple and four RBIs, while Ama Biney paced the Engineers on the base paths with two stolen bases.
  

ON THE MOUND 

• Senior Casey Tsamis (Colchester, Conn.) earned the no decision in her six inning effort where she allowed eight runs (seven earned) on 12 hits with two walks. 
• Eddleston registered her sixth win of the season in a one inning relief appearance. 
• Nicole Ruberka got the no decision as she pitched the first three innings and gave up four runs (three earned) on four hits with two walks and one strikeout. 
• Martin took the loss for WPI within 3.1 innings in the circle as she surrendered five runs (four earned) on four hits, four walks and struck out five. 

HOW IT HAPPENED 

• On a sacrifice fly into right, Gonzales plated Biney for the first Engineers run within the opening frame to grab an early 1-0 lead before Emerson squared the game thanks to a DeFranco reached home on DeFusco's RBI grounder to third. 
• Emerson used their home half of the second inning to plate two runs and grab the 3-1 lead. 
• Goldstein smacked an RBI double into the left center gap for the go-ahead 2-1 run and was able to cross home on a wild pitch from Ruberska to secure a two-run edge. 
• A 3-1 lead held by the Lions was erased in the third after the Engineers put up a three run third, highlighted by Gonzales' bases clearing three bagger that made its way into right center with the score now at 5-3. 
• WPI's lead was short-lived as Emerson used the third and fourth innings to plate three runs and put themselves back on top by two at 7-5. 
• Lowe plated on a wild pitch within the third before Leonardos sent a two-RBI single into left in the fourth to cross both Fortuna and DeFranco home. 
• Once again, Emerson saw its lead disappear after WPI plated another trio of runs in the fifth frame and used an RBI singles from Gonzales and May and grounder from Renee LeClaire to give the Engineers the 8-7 advantage. 
• The sixth and seventh innings were used as the comeback innings for Emerson with the Lions tacking on the winning pair of runs for the 9-8 victory.
• In the sixth frame, Emerson began its comeback on a bases loaded walk to junior Alena Jones (Woodinville, Wash.) to even the score for the fourth time at 8-8. 
• With one out in the bottom of the seventh and Fortuna on second and senior Jillian Gearin (Hermosa Beach, Calif.) on third, DeFranco brought in Gearin, who safely plated the winning run after the catcher mishandled the ball. 

GAME TWO: WPI 9, Emerson 5

INSIDE THE NUMBERS 

IN THE BOX

• Leonardos anchored the Lions at the plate with a 2-for-3 day and one run scored, while Jones had three RBIs while going 1-for-4.
• Gonzales and LeClaire went a combined 6-for-8 in the box for WPI with Gonzales going 2-for-4 with a homer, double, two runs scored, stolen base and four RBIs and LeClaire went a perfect 4-for-4, knocking in three runs on a homer along with two runs scored.

ON THE MOUND

• Eddleston was tagged with the loss for Emerson after she allowed seven runs to cross on eight hits and two walks through 3.2 innings. 
• Sophomore Erin Nolan (Hunterdon, N.J.) and DeFranco pitched a combined 3.1 innings of relief and allowed two runs on four hits, one walk and one strikeout. 
• Starting for WPI was Phillips, who started on the mound for the first 3.1 innings and surrendered four runs on three hits along with six walks and one strikeout. 
• Saucier entered in relief for Phillips through the remaining 3.2 innings and held the Lions to one run on two hits, two walks and three strikeouts. 

HOW IT HAPPENED 

• WPI got its first run within the opening frame after Nina Murphy-Cook reached on a fielder's choice and claimed a 1-0 lead until Emerson used its half of the frame to plate the equalizer on a wild pitch. 
• After three innings in the books, Emerson found themselves down 5-1 behind a two run bomb into center from the bat of Gonzales and another two-run homer from LeClaire. 
• Emerson got a pair of runs back in the home half of the third after Jones sent a two RBI single to the center field fence with the score now 5-3. 
• Gonzales drove in another two scores within the fourth to push WPI back up by four (7-3) in the fourth only to have Emerson put a run on the board behind Lowe's fly ball to right (7-4).
• Over the fifth and sixth innings, the Engineers tacked on another pair of runs on a grounder by Kuberka and RBI single to center by LeClaire (9-4). 
• The seventh inning saw the Lions tack on its final run on Jones' fly ball into center with two outs, yet Sauicer got Dix to send a fly ball into center to ice the Engineer's 9-5 win.

UP NEXT 

• Emerson gets back onto the field on Tuesday afternoon against Lesley in a doubleheader slated to start at 3:00 p.m.
• WPI plays host Amherst in twin-bill on Wednesday, March 28 at 3:30 p.m.