Pride Earn Two Wins on the Road

FRANKLIN, Mass. – Regis College softball returned to the win column in dominant fashion, sweeping Dean College with wins of 9-7 and 8-1 on the road. The victories improve the Pride's overall record to 10-18 and their Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) mark to 4-10.

In Game One, Chloe Beland (Southborough, Mass.) led the way at the plate, going 2-for-4 with two runs scored and two RBIs. Madigan Lawler (Branford, Conn.) also had a strong performance, going 2-for-4 with an RBI. On the mound, Gabriella Blanchard (North Haven, Conn.) earned the win with a complete-game effort, striking out five and allowing just three earned runs.

In Game Two, the Pride continued to roll offensively. Mel Rees (Marlborough, Mass.) and Lawler each went 2-for-3 with an RBI, while Lexi Nichols (Granby, Conn.) added a 2-for-4 performance with one RBI. Lynsey Kay (Bellingham, Mass.) led the team with a game-high three RBIs. Kate Julian (Mendon, Mass.) turned in a stellar performance in the circle, pitching a complete game with eight strikeouts and giving up just one run in the 8-1 win.

Game One

• Beland got things started for the Pride in the opening inning with a base hit, and just one batter later, Rees launched a two-run homer over the fence to give the Pride an early 2-0 lead.
• A defensive battle followed over the next three and a half innings, with Blanchard retiring four batters during that stretch. However, the Bulldogs broke through in the bottom of the fifth, capitalizing on a pair of errors and two hits to score four runs and take a 4-2 lead.
• Nichols answered in the sixth with an RBI triple, and she was brought home just one batter later to tie the game at 4-4. But the Bulldogs responded again, taking advantage of additional Pride miscues to reclaim the lead, going up 7-4 heading into the final inning.
• Refusing to go quietly, the Pride erupted for five runs in the top of the seventh, highlighted by a two-RBI double from Beland and a triple from Kay. Blanchard and the defense then shut the door in the bottom half, holding the Bulldogs scoreless and hitless to secure a thrilling 9-7 victory in Game One.

Game Two

• Kay jump-started the Pride's offense in the first inning with a two-run double, then came around to score later in the frame, giving the Pride an early 3-0 lead.
•  Samantha Kelepouris (Chelmsford, Mass.) crossed the plate in the second inning, followed by a Rees double that drove in Beland for the Pride's fifth run. The Bulldogs responded with an RBI double in the bottom half of the second to make it 5-1.
• The Pride extended their lead in the fifth inning, as back-to-back doubles plated two runs and pushed their advantage to 7-1.
• Beland capped the scoring in the sixth with a perfectly executed sacrifice bunt to bring Bianca Burke (Cambridge, Mass.) home, sealing an 8-1 victory and a series sweep over Dean.

Inside the Numbers:

• Mel Rees launched her second home run of the season with a two-run shot in the opening inning of Game One.
• First-years Gabriella Blanchard and Kate Julian earned their fifth and third wins of the season, respectively.
• Lexi Nichols and Kay each recorded a triple in Game One to fuel the Pride's offense.
• In Game Two, both of Kay and Rees' hits were doubles, adding to the team's extra-base hit tally, while Kay's three RBIs in the game marked a career-high for the first-year.

Up Next:

The Pride will remain on the road this Wednesday, April 23, as they travel to Buzzards Bay, Massachusetts, to take on Massachusetts Maritime Academy in a doubleheader scheduled for 4 p.m. and 6 p.m.