LOWELL, Mass.- The Setters dropped a doubleheader to the River Hawks of UMass Lowell as Pace lost 6-5 in the opener and 2-1 in the nightcap. Pace falls to 20-10 overall and 8-8 in the Northeast-10, while the River Hawks improve to 25-8 and 13-4 in conference play.
In the opener, UMass Lowell built a 5-0 lead with two runs in the second and fifth, while the River Hawks added a run in the sixth. The Setters got the bats going in the final inning as they sent 10 batters to plate as they took advantage of two River Hawks errors to load the bases. Chelsea Shea (Babylon, NY/West Babylon) (Babylon, NY/West Babylon) blasted a grand slam homerun to pull the Setters within a run at 5-4.
Pace was not finished as Samantha Garcia (Rancho Cucamonga, CA/Rancho Cucamonga) (Rancho Cucamonga, CA/Rancho Cucamonga) and Rachael McMahon (Corona, CA/Esperanza) (Corona, CA/Esperanza) singled with two outs to keep the inning alive. Jeane Drury (Flanders, NJ/Morris Catholic High School) (Flanders, NJ/Morris Catholic) singled in the tying run as Pace tied the score at five. UMass Lowell rallied in the bottom of the seventh as they pushed across a run with two outs to take the opener.
For Pace, Caitlin McCann (San Mateo, CA/Notre Dame) (San Mateo, CA/Notre Dame) tossed six innings, allowing five runs (three earned) on seven hits, while striking out one. Kayla Hill (Brooklyn, NY/James Madison High School) (Brooklyn, NY/James Madison) came on in the final inning, allowing two hits and the game-winning run to drop her first game of the season (5-1).
In the nightcap, the River Hawks got on the board in the third inning with a run. Pace answered in the fourth as McMahon walked and Drury singled with one out. Sabrina Gonzalez (Oxnard, CA/Ventura College) singled in McMahon with the tying run. The River Hawks got a solo homerun in the bottom of the fourth and held on for the win. Shea (3-3) tossed a complete game allowing two runs (one earned) on five hits and struck out two.
The Setters return to action on Saturday, April 7 when they travel to North Andover, MA for a Northeast-10 Conference doubleheader against Merrimack College at 12 pm.
