Lasell Softball sweeps GNAC doubleheader against Anna Maria

NEWTON, Mass. – The Lasell College softball team swept a Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) doubleheader from Anna Maria College Sunday afternoon at Taylor Field in a pair of five-inning affairs, 8-0 and 9-1. The games were moved to Lasell's home field but Anna Maria batted as the home team.

With the wins, Lasell improved to 4-10 overall and 3-1 in GNAC games. The Lasers have already won more conference games than they did all of last season. Anna Maria drops to 0-20 overall and 0-12 in the GNAC.

Sophomore Nicole Arcese (Holliston, Mass.) and freshman Hailey Haskins (Franklin, N.H.) tossed complete-game victories for the Lasers, and both also had a team-high two RBIs in the doubleheader.

Lasell has a busy week ahead with five doubleheaders, beginning Tuesday with a non-conference pair of Eastern Nazarene College and Wednesday at Taylor Field with a GNAC twinbill vs. Johnson & Wales (3:00 p.m.)

Game 1 – Lasell 8, Anna Maria 0

Arcese scattered four hits and did not walk a batter to record the victory for the Lasers. She struck out five to record her first win of the season (1-2). Arcese also had a hit and knocked in two at the plate.

Freshman Bethany Hector (Jaffrey, N.H.) went 3-for-3 for the Lasers and classmates Alexis Truesdale (Wakefield, Mass.) and Sarah Walton (Poland, Maine) had two hits apiece.

Lasell got on the board with one run in the top of the first when Truesdale led off with a double and came around to score on a passed ball and an infield ground out. The Lasers put up four runs in the second inning; highlights in the inning included an RBI triple by freshman Nicolette Genkos (Worcester, Mass.) and an RBI single by Truesdale.

The Lasers put the game out of reach with three runs in the fifth inning. They loaded the bases when sophomore Sarah Kline (Vernon, Conn.) was hit by a pitch and Hector and Walton followed with singles. Kline scored on an AMCAT error, Hector came home on a walk to sophomore Essie Plouffe (North Scituate, R.I.) and Walton touched the plate after an RBI single by Arcese.

Game 1 – Lasell 9, Anna Maria 1

Haskins allowed just one hit in the complete-game effort, walking none and striking out five. The only AMCAT hit was a triple in the fourth inning by senior Amanda Lemire (Methuen, Mass.), and she scored on an infield groundout. Haskins evened her record at 3-3.

Haskins and sophomore Bailey Burnett (Phillipston, Mass.) had two hits apiece, and Haskins knocked in two. Freshman Shayna Fondini (Burlington, Mass.) had a double and an RBI and scored two runs.

Lasell scored two runs in the first inning. Sophomore Victoria Spellman (Rocky Hill, Conn.) had an RBI single and classmate Arianna Genovese (Rocky Hill, Conn.) reached on a fielder's choice, stole second, and scored on a pair of wild pitches. Spellman scored for Lasell in the third inning when she reached second on an error and after a passed ball, scored on an infield groundout to make it 3-0.

The Lasers pulled away with four runs in the fourth inning. Highlights of the inning included an RBI double by Fondini and an RBI triple by Haskins. Lasell scored its final two runs in the fifth inning on RBI singles by Haskins and freshman Allie Borowsky (Dalton, Mass.)

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