MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. – Perhaps something special is brewing in Beaconville for UMass Boston Softball. The Beacons who were picked to finish sixth in the Little East Conference preseason poll have made a statement down in South Carolina to start the year, winning seven of their first eight games.

Trailing by a run in the sixth inning, the patience of UMass Boston paid off as they strung together three runs to come from behind to beat undefeated Utica University, 5-3, on Friday afternoon.

THE BASICS

UMass Boston 5, Utica University 3

UMass Boston (7-1)

Utica University (7-1)

HOW IT HAPPENED
For the sixth time in seven games on the trip, the Beacons got on the scoreboard first when freshman outfielder Sofie Richland singled to start the game and moved to second on a sacrifice by senior infielder Haley Tilberry. Senior outfielder Sydney Sanden plated Richland in the very next at-bat with an RBI single to right field, giving UMass Boston a 1-0 lead after one inning.

Junior pitcher Bri Melchionda looked to escape trouble in the 2nd inning after back-to-back hit batters put runners on first and second with nobody out. After a caught stealing and strikeout, a ground ball squirted through freshman infielder Lauren Miner's glove, allowing sophomore infielder Abigail Sacks to reach base and freshman outfielder Maddie Zulager to score the tying run.

The Beacons would load the bases with one out in the third inning on three straight singles, but graduate utility player Emily Joss would snag a Miner line drive at shortstop and double up Sanden at second to retire the side with the game still tied at one apiece. Another scoring chance would come about for UMass Boston with runners on the corners in the fourth inning with one out, but back-to-back groundouts would prevent the Beacons from being able to retake the lead.

The Pioneers would make the most of their opportunity in the fifth inning, using a leadoff double by Sacks and another infielder error by Miner to put two runners on with nobody on. After Melchionda recorded the first out via strike out, Joss lifted a double to right center to score both runs and give Utica the 3-1 lead.

UMass Boston would get a run back in the home half of the fifth when they loaded up the bases again with one out. Following a line out from Melchionda, senior first baseman Jordan Toomey reached on an error by Joss to bring the Beacons within one run, 3-2, before sophomore utility player Amauri English flew out to foul territory to end the inning.
 
Once again, the Beacons would amass a late-game rally to the tune of three runs in the sixth inning to regain the lead. With one out, sophomore catcher Kaitlyn Sawyer worked a walk followed by an infield bunt single from Richland to put two runners on. That would send Tilberry to the plate who hit a ground rule double which tied the game at three.
Sophomore pitcher Lucia Gargiulo would throw a wild pitch to Sanden which gave the Beacons the lead, 4-3, before the senior outfielder would rope an RBI single to left field to give UMass Boston a two-run cushion heading into the seventh inning.

Utica University would not go away quietly, getting their first two batters on via a walk and then error by Toomey at first with nobody out. Melchionda would battle to get junior outfielder Abbigayle Finch and Emily Joss looking for the first two outs of the frame. Working around a wild pitch which put runners into scoring position, Melchionda struck out sophomore infielder Kylie Murray to polish off the 5-3 victory.

Bri Melchionda finished the game with a season-high 13 strikeouts across seven innings of work while allowing three runs (one earned), on three hits and one walk.

BY THE NUMBERS

• Sofie Richland and Sydney Sanden led the way for UMass Boston with three hits apiece while Sanden drove in two runs
• The Beacons have now tied their best start in program history at 7-1 which was their best start back in 2017 before dropping their second game of the season
• UMass Boston is now 5-1 in South Carolina when they are the first team to score in the game
• UMass Boston has recorded 10-plus hits in seven consecutive games

 
WHO'S NEXT
UMass Boston will close out their spring break trip in South Carolina this afternoon with a matchup against Muhlenberg College at 5:00 PM. The two teams have met once in program history, a 3-0 loss last season for the Beacons during their spring trip in which the Mules scored all three runs in the seventh inning.