Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2 THE BASICS
Game One Score: WPI 7, Emerson 3
Game Two Score: WPI 8, Emerson 0 (5 innings)
Game One Pitching Decision: WP: Katie Martin (3-1) | LP: Neely Eddleston (5-3)
Game Two Pitching Decision: WP: Mackenzie Phillips (4-2) | LP: Karagan Knowles (3-3)
Location: Worcester, Mass. | Rooftop Field
Date: Sunday, March 24, 2019
The Lead: The Emerson softball team opened up New England Women's and Men's Conference (NEWMAC) action on the road against WPI where the Lions slipped in its first conference doubleheader. Emerson fell 7-3 in the day's opening game before falling in five innings in an 8-0 shutout setback.
GAME ONE: WPI 7, Emerson 3
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
- Senior Marisa DeFranco (Falls Church, Va.) finished 1-for-4 in the box with both senior Alena Jones (Woodinville, Wash.) and freshman Mary Kuczkowski (Litchfield, N.H.) picking up one hit apiece and both Kuczkowski and junior Micaela Dix (White House Station, N.J.) registering one RBI.
- Eddleston shouldered her third loss of the season in a four inning outing where she gave up six runs on seven hits with one walk and one strikeout.
- Cassie Graca and Marissa Gonzales each picked up a pair of hits, going a combined 4-for-7 at the plate with both Caroline Wood and Skylar O'Connell driving in a pair of runs.
- Katie Martin earned the game one win and surrendered one run on three hits through six innings while she fanned six batters and walked four.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- DeFranco opened the first game with a single and later came around to score on a wild pitch in the first frame and put two runners on the bases, but were retired on strikes.
- The Emerson bats were silenced within three consecutive 1-2-3 innings in the second, third and fourth until Jones registered a hit to begin the fifth.
- Graca raced home on a two-out RBI single by Gonzales to even the game at 1-1 in the home half of the third and added three more in the fourth on O'Connell's two-run shot that lifted WPI up 4-1.
- A two-run standup triple from Wood pushed the Engineers' lead to 6-1 followed by its seventh run crossing on a grounder by Kylie Juarez.
- After being held to zero runs from the second to sixth frames, Emerson made their way back onto the board with two runs in the top of the seventh.
- Freshman Calli Pratt (Dighton, Ma.), Knowles and Jones each drew walks to load up the bags and had Dix drew an RBI free pass with Emerson down 7-2.
- Kuczkowski slipped in an RBI single before the WPI was able to erase the lead runner at the plate on back to back fielder's choices and an infield fly ball to wrap the 7-3 setback.
GAME TWO: WPI 8, Emerson 0 (5 innings)
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
- Freshman Mallory Shofi (Ridgefield, Conn.) and Kuczkowski accounted for the Lions hits as both DeFranco and sophomore Lindsey Lowe (Porter Ranch, Calif.) drew one walk.
- Knowles lasted 1.1 innings and allowed five runs to cross alongside three walks and one strikeout.
- Gonzales finished going 2-for-2 with three RBIs and three runs scored and Phillips earned the win for the Engineers within a complete five inning outing allowing two hits and two walks with five punch outs.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- WPI spread all eight of its runs within four innings, including a five-run second inning.
- The Engineers put the Lions in a 1-0 deficit right out the gate of the first with Graca coming across on a double steal before a five-run second inning highlighted by a bases-bases-clearing double by Gonzales.
- Emerson saw the score differential bump up to eight in the bottom half of the fourth after Brittany Bolster batted a pinch hit RBI single.
UP NEXT
•Emerson continues it NEWMAC road swing with a 3 p.m. twin bill over at Wellesley on Friday, March 29.
•WPI takes on Amherst come Wednesday, March 27 to begin an eight-game road trip.
STAY LIVE WITH THE LIONS
