BRIARCLIFF MANOR, N.Y. – Senior third baseman
Victoria Quinones (Bronx, NY/Cardinal Spellman) hit her first career home run in game one on Wednesday, and junior catcher
Nikole Larm (Brewster, NY/Brewster) hit a long ball in game two, as the Pace University softball team split a Northeast-10 Conference inter-division doubleheader with Merrimack College at Pace Field. The Setters rolled to a 14-6 victory in game one, which ended in six innings, but fell in Wednesday's finale to the Warriors, 5-4. The Setters move to 22-13 overall and 15-6 in the NE-10, while Merrimack goes to 20-15 and 11-13.
Game 1: Pace 14, Merrimack 6
A high-scoring affair went the Setters' way in Wednesday's opener. Pace packed it on early, and then rallied in the sixth for a walkoff win via the eight-run rule.
Quinones hit the first home run of her career on a two-run blast to left field in the bottom of the second. The Setters went on to load the bases shortly after, bringing in another run on a ground out by junior second baseman
Haley Hernandez (West Hills, CA/El Camino Real). Sophomore designated player
Surina Sandhu (Elk Grove, CA/Elk Grove High School) then roped a two-RBI , through the left side to bring in another two runs, and junior catcher
Samantha Lima (Brawley, CA/Saddleback College) followed with a double to left-center, plating Sandhu to leave Pace up, 6-0, after two.
Merrimack picked up a run in the third, but Pace strung together another rally to take a big lead in the game. With two runners on, sophomore center fielder
Larissa Labs (Carlsbad, CA/San Marcos High School) doubled to left-center, plating sophomore right fielder
Joyce LaBonte (Bolton, MA/Nashoba Regional High School) from second to make it a 7-1 lead for Pace. Hernandez later brought in two runs on a single up the middle to give the Setters an eight-run advantage. Sandhu capped off the inning with an RBI double that put the Setters up, 10-1.
The Warriors fought back in the top of the fourth with a five-run rally to get back within four. Third baseman Kaleigh Finigan delivered the big blow in the inning, a three-run homer to center that made it a 10-4 game. Designated player Emily Kurkul made it back-to-back home runs for Merrimack, making it a five-run game. Merrimack brought in one more run on a sacrifice fly later in the inning, leaving Pace up, 10-6.
In the bottom of the fifth, freshman
Lindsey Ah Soon (Ena Beach, HI/Kamehameha Kapalama) knocked in a run on a fielder's choice to put the Setters back up by five. The Setters then executed a double steal with runners on the corners, scoring sophomore shortstop
Ashley Lew (New City, NY/Clarkstown High School North) from third to take a six-run lead.
In the sixth, sophomore outfielder
Jordan Chillinsky (Carlsbad, CA/Carlsbad High School) doubled to center, plating Quinones to get Pace within a run from ending the game. Lew then came through with two away, singling into left field to bring in Chillinsky and end the game.
Quinones finished 1-for-4 with two RBIs, two runs and her second-inning homer. Sandhu went 2-for-4 with three RBIs, a run and a double. Chillinsky went 3-for-4 with three runs, an RBI and a double. Lew batted 3-for-5 with two runs, one RBI and a stolen base.
Merrimack was led by Kaleigh Finigan's three RBIs after her three-run homer in the fourth. Kurkul hit 2-for-3 with two RBIs, a run and a home run.
Senior starter
Caitlin McCann (San Mateo, CA/Notre Dame) improved to 8-4 with the win on Wednesday. Junior
Kaitlynn Nelson (Ojai, CA/Nordhoff) came on in the fifth, and threw two hitless innings, while striking out three batters. Merrimack starter Megan Cook falls to 4-5 after allowing six runs in two innings.
Game 2: Merrimack 5, Pace 4
Wednesday's finale proved to be a much different game than its opener. A low-scoring, back-and-forth contest concluded with the Warriors taking home a 5-4 win.
In the top of the second, Merrimack attempted a double steal with runners on the corners and two outs. Larm threw down to second to get the final out of the inning, but a rundown allowed Merrimack to bring in a run and take the first lead of the game. During the Setters' next at bat, a wild pitch brought in Quinones from third, tying the game at 1-1.
Merrimack took the lead back in the top of the fourth when center fielder Tamarra Crowe brought in first baseman Haley Currie on a ground out to second. Sophomore left fielder
Tara Bernstein (Glen Oaks, NY/Bayside High School) led off the fourth with a bloop double to center, and then moved to third on a sacrifice bunt by Chillinsky. Labs brought her in to tie the game on a fielder's choice, then moved into scoring position after an error. Lew then smacked a ground-rule double to left-center, bringing Labs around to score and give the Setters a 3-2 lead.
Third baseman Caitlin McBride tied the game for the Warriors in the top of the sixth with an RBI double to right-center. A sacrifice fly by Kurkul, followed by an error, brought in two more runs for the Warriors, putting them up, 5-3.
With just three outs left, Larm led off the seventh with a blast over the center-field wall to get Pace back within one. The Setters were unable to bring another run across, falling by a run in Wednesday's nightcap.
Courtney Zambello picked up the win for Merrimack to improve to 6-4 on the year. She allowed four runs (two earned) on nine hits in the complete seven innings. Sophomore
Jaclyn Flores (Escondido, CA/San Pasqual High School) took the loss to fall to 6-4. She went seven innings, allowing five runs (two earned) and striking out three.
Larm hit 3-for-4 with a solo home run in Wednesday's finale. Labs batted 1-for-3 with an RBI and a run. Bernstein went 1-for-3 with a double, while Lew hit 1-for-4 with a double and a stolen base.
McBride hit 2-for-3 with an RBI and a run for Merrimack. Currie scored twice after going 2-for-3.
The Setters will next play on Friday, April 22, when they host American International College in the first game of a three-game series at Pace Field. The game is set to begin at a new time of 4 p.m.
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www.PaceUAthletics.com and follow Pace Athletics on Facebook (
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