Keene State Swoops Past Fitchburg State

Owls blanks Falcons 18-0 in game one; post 8-0 game two victory

KEENE,N.H. (March 29, 2012) – The Fitchburg State softball team suffered a pair of losses to Keene State College this afternoon, dropping 18-0 in game one and falling 8-0 in game two.

Keene State 18, Fitchburg State 0 (Game 1)

Keene State collected 15 hits and senior Emily Albin (Bethel Conn.) pitched a five inning no-hitter in the 18-0 opening game victory.  The Owls (9-1), who extended their winning streak to nine games, scored their 18 runs in the first three innings. Junior Nicole Dupuis (Fitchburg, Mass.) provide the big hit in a five-run first inning, a three-run home run over the left field fence. 

A four-run second inning included a two-run double to center by junior Jessica Fiorenza (Wakefield, Mass.) before the Owls scored nine more runs in the third with freshman Julia Nolan (Litchfield, N.H.), senior Laura Chandler (Wakefield, Mass.) junior Kayla Joyce (Bridgewater, Mass.), Fiorenza, freshman Samantha Nitso (Londonderry, N.H.), senior Haley Chandler (Wakefield, Mass.), and freshman Rachel Boynton (Concord, N.H.) each getting RBI hits.

Albin (2-1) fanned eight and issued one walk on the way to notching her first career no-hitter, while senior Allison Cousins (Leominster, Mass./Leominster) took the loss for the Falcons.

Keene State 8, Fitchburg State 0 (Game 2)

Sisters Laura and Haley Chandler both connected for homeruns and senior pitcher Sara Stocklinski (Newton, N.J.) tossed a six-inning one-hitter in the 8-0 second game win for the Owls.

Laura Chandler gave the Owls a 1-0 lead with a line drive home run to centerfield in the bottom of the fourth inning and Keene State went on to score three more runs in the fifth with Haley Chandler, Bradford and Dupuis contributing RBI singles.

Haley Chandler ended the game in the sixth inning with a walk-off three run home run to center.  The Owls finished the game with 13 hits.  Haley Chandler had two hits and four RBIs, while  Bradford, Dupuis, and Fiorenza finished with two hits each.

Stocklinski improved her record to 4-0 with the win, striking out a season high ten batters and allowing just one walk. Sophomore Katelyn Fitzgerald (Fitchburg, Mass./Fitchburg) collected the lone hit for Fitchburg State (3-13), a single to center in the fifth inning.

Fitchburg State (3-13, 0-0 MASCAC) returns to action on Saturday as it hosts Salem State University at 1 p.m. Keene State (9-1, 0-0 LEC) will visit Rhode Island College on Saturday afternoon.