MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. – A six-run third inning would be all Muhlenberg College needed to get past the red-hot UMass Boston Softball team that closed out their spring break trip to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina with a 7-2 record after falling to the Mules, 9-4, on Friday evening.
THE BASICS
UMass Boston 4, Muhlenberg College 9
UMass Boston (7-2)
Muhlenberg College (6-6)
HOW IT HAPPENED
A sacrifice groundout by junior outfielder Kersti Svenningsen got the Mules on the scoreboard first in the opening frame before sophomore catcher
Kaitlyn Sawyer reached on an error by sophomore third baseman Ava Calabrese in the next inning to tie the game up at one.
In the third inning, Muhlenberg would strike for six runs against junior pitcher
Emily Doble, stringing together four consecutive hits to take a 3-1 lead before the Beacons would record the first out of the inning. A two-run single by sophomore infielder Kaya Mahy and a pair of RBI singles from junior utility player Samantha Winegard and freshman outfielder Scooter Hulsen would give the Mules a 7-1 lead after three innings.
Freshman pitcher
Adrianna Fusco would knock home two with a double in the fourth to cut the deficit down to four runs, 7-3, and also pitch three innings of relief in which she gave up two runs on fours hits while striking out two and walking one.
Sophomore utility player
Amauri English cranked her second home run of the season in the fifth for UMass Boston who would ultimately fall to the Mules, 9-4.
BY THE NUMBERS
- Amauri English finishes the trip playing in nine games, hitting .370 with two home runs and 13 RBIs surpassing all her numbers from the 28 games she played in last season
- Despite an 0-for-7 overall day, freshman infielder Lauren Miner closes the trip hitting .280 with 11 RBIs and three extra base hits
- As a team, UMass Boston hit .358 to start the year in South Carolina with a team ERA of 3.56 and a fielding percentage of .930
- UMass Boston still matches the 2017 team for the best start in program history with a 7-2 record, that team started 12-2 before suffering their next loss
WHO'S NEXT
UMass Boston heads back to the Boston area to prepare for a doubleheader against Bridgewater State University this Thursday afternoon with game one scheduled to start at 2:30 PM and game two tentatively set to begin at 5:00 PM. The two teams met last season in Boston for a doubleheader in which the Beacons took game one, 8-3, before losing 7-0 in game two. UMass Boston is 12-9 all-time against the Bears.
