In their Little East Conference opener last Friday, the PSU Softball team downed UMass Dartmouth 4-2 for their first game played since their Spring Break trip to Florida. Senior pitcher and captain Whitney Roberts (Chocorua, N.H.) threw for a complete game, allowing only five hits and drilling in four strikeouts in 100 total pitches.
Junior Nicole Abreu (Hudson, N.H.) led the Panthers in batting, connecting on three singles to go 3-for-3 on the day. Sophomore Katie Kennard (Concord, N.H.) racked up a double and scored two runs, going 2-for-4 at bat.
UMass was the first to score at the bottom of the second when freshman Dylan Parsons slammed a double out to right-centerfield with two outs. Sophomore Abby Tremblay then connected with a single base hit to drive Parsons home.
Plymouth was the next to cross home plate, scoring three runs in the fourth due to a couple of throwing and fielding errors by UMass. After a single and a stolen base by Kennard to lead off the inning, the Corsairs failed to connect on a throwback to second base and allowed her to score. Abreu then singled to left field to drive in a run, followed quickly by a second run due to a UMass fielding error on the hit. This brought the score to 3-1.
The Panthers added a fourth run in the top of the fifth with consecutive doubles from Kennard and freshman Abrie Davis (Amherst, N.H.). UMass fought hard until the end, loading the bases with two outs on their last at bat. Parsons would go on to score the Corsairs’ final run on a wild pitch, but it was the last time they would cross home plate. The final score was 4-2.
When asked about how the challenges of the Florida losses and weather related to field conditions were affecting the team, Head Coach Bruce Addison said, “I am hoping the challenging schedule [in Florida] will prepare us for our LEC schedule and make it a little less challenging. As far as the scheduling, I have told the girls we have to adjust and adapt to everything we do, on the field and off. We can’t control the weather, so there is no sense trying to predict it, or worry about it.”
Coach Addison liked the gameplay he saw from the team in the LEC opener and is looking forward to continuing the improvements.
“We played really well versus Dartmouth, so we need to use the momentum from that and keep that focus for the rest of our season,” said Addison.
The second game of the doubleheader was called due to unplayable field conditions because of rain. The Panthers (1-10, 1-0 LEC) are scheduled to take on Salem State in a non-conference doubleheader away onWednesday, April 8 starting at 3:30 p.m.