Leopards, Nor'Easters Split Twinbill
Six-game losing streak snapped with 4-1, extra-inning win in first game as Lizz Harvey hits game-winning home run
BOSTON -- Senior Lauren Webb (Jericho, Vt.) belted a pair of triples and drove in four runs to help the University of New England earn a split with an 11-3 win over Wentworth Institute of Technology in the second game of a The Commonwealth Coast Conference doubleheader at Carr Diamond Thursday afternoon.
Junior Lizz Harvey (McConnellsburg, Pa.) gave the Leopards a 4-1 victory in the opener with a three-run, walk-off home run in the bottom of the eighth.
Limited to just four hits in game one, Big Blue got the offense cranked up in the finale, collecting 14 hits while taking advantage of six Wentworth errors.
UNE, which led 4-0 after five innings, broke the game open with five runs in the top of the sixth. Sophomore Marie Mantelli (Thompson, Conn.) led off with a homer to left-center. Classmate Maegen Johnson (Standish, Maine) would later plate a run with an infield single, and the Nor'easters capitalized on a pair of Wentworth miscues to push across three more runners.
Johnson finished with three hits and three runs scored. Mantelli and senior Julie Monteiro (Portsmouth, R.I.) were both repeat hitters.
Sophomore Erin Lyons (Salem, N.H.) carried a shutout into the sixth en route to her eighth win against five losses. After surrendering three runs in the frame, she settled for a five-hitter with eight strikeouts.
Junior Amber Zablowsky (Rochester, Mass.) was a tough-luck loser in the opener. She allowed just one run over the first seven innings before the contest went to the tie-breaker in the eighth. Zablowsky walked two and fanned five.
The Nor'easters got on the scoreboard in the top of the first when sophomore Ashley Gott (Winterport, Maine) singled to drive home Johnson, who had led off the contest with a single, then stole second.
Wentworth drew even in the home half of the third when Jen Giudice (Central Valley, N.Y.) came home on a UNE outfield throwing error.
Senior Caylee Johanson (Windsor, Conn.) handcuffed the visitors, limiting Big Blue to four hits and one base on balls.
The Nor'easters (19-9, 12-4 TCCC) are scheduled to host Anna Maria College for a TCCC doubleheader Saturday at noon. The Leopards (11-18, 4-12) entertain Nichols College that same day.