Gulls split with Wheaton in regular season finale

Norton, Mass. – Already solidified as the \#1 seed in the upcoming TCCC Tournament, the Endicott softball capped off their 2011 regular season with a pair of non-conference games against Wheaton College.  The Gulls and Lyons split, leaving Endicott with a 32-6 (23-1 TCCC) record heading into next week’s conference playoffs.

Endicott’s loss in the first game ended a streak of 22 wins in-a-row.

Boxscore

Down 2-0 in the top of the second inning, the Blue and Green scored four times to take a 4-2 advantage. The lead was short-lived, however, as Wheaton responded with three runs in the bottom half of that inning and another in the bottom of the third to produce all the offense needed to win game one 6-5. 

Gulls freshman Jennie Lacolla (Stoneham, Mass.) went 3-for-4 at the plate with a RBI while Jocelyn Russo (Middletown, Conn.), Jesse Bilafer (Concord, Mass.) and Mattie Brett (Waterford, Conn.) all added RBI hits to lead the offense. 

On the mound for Endicott, senior pitcher Jenna Bortolotti (Milton, Mass.) struggled through 2 2/3 innings but freshman Nell O’Connor (Harwich, Mass.) came on to toss 3 1/3 innings of perfect, no-hit, scoreless relief.

The Lyons were led by seniors Katy Salka (Ayer, Mass.) and Rachel Merrick (Methuen, Mass.) as well as freshman Jenna Rocha (Rehoboth, Mass.) each recorded two hits in the game. Salka led the charge with two RBI while Merrick and Rocha chipped in with one RBI apiece. 

Wheaton pitcher Allison Baker (Orange, Conn.) hurled a complete-game, allowing five runs on 10 hits with no walks. Only three of those runs were earned as Baker improved to 15-12 on the season. 

Endicott’s four runs in the top of the second all came with two outs. After a leadoff double by senior outfielder Ashley Wright (Merrimack, N.H.), back-to-back outs and a hit batsman, the Gulls recorded three straight hits to drive in four runs.   The Gulls scored their fifth run of the game on a fielder’s choice RBI by Brett in the top of the seventh before leaving the tying run on third base to end the game. 

Boxscore

A three-run top of the first inning set the tone for a Gulls offense that went up 7-0 by the fourth inning and eventually won 7-4 in game two. 

Mattie Brett, who already recorded a RBI game one, exploded for five RBIs on a 3-for-4 day at the plate. Two of her hits were homeruns, including a three-run shot in the first and a two-run blast in the fourth. Brett also recorded three runs scored. 

At the top of the lineup, Jocelyn Russo was a perfect 2-for-2 with a run scored and a RBI while at the bottom of the lineup, freshman catcher Alli Noyes (Tewksbury, Mass.) added a RBI single to left center in the top of the third. 

Sophomore Kayla Carignan (Laconia, N.H.) and Nell O’Connor combined to allow just one earned run on six hits and three walks in the win. Carignan remained perfect on the season, improving to her 2011 record to 9-0. 

Wheaton scored three times in the bottom of the fifth to cut Endicott’s lead down to 7-3. In that inning, Jenna Rocha hit a RBI single to left, Katy Salka had a RBI groundout and senior Kristen Hunt (Milford, Conn.) added a single through the right side to bring home a run. In the bottom of the seventh, Rocha completed her solid day at the dish with a solo shot to right field to round out the scoring. 

Endicott will now await for the TCCC’s official release on the conference tournament seedings and schedule. The Gulls anticipate a first round bye before taking the field on Tuesday, May 3^rd.