Fitchburg State Shuts Down Eastern Nazarene, 1-0/3-0

Falcons earn 1-0 victory in game one, defeat Eastern Nazarene, 3-0 in game two

FITCHBURG, Mass. (April, 9, 2013) – The Fitchburg State softball team registered a pair of wins in non-conference action this afternoon at Coolidge Park, The Falcons took game one, 1-0 before collecting a 3-0 victory in the nightcap to complete the sweep.

Fitchburg State 1, Eastern Nazarene 0 (Game 1)

In game one, Fitchburg State hurler Brittany Whiting (Sharon, Mass./Sharon) was stellar in the circle, allowing just three hits without walking a batter and striking out four to pick up her third win on the year, while Eastern Nazarene starter Carissa Cicolini (Methuen, Mass./Methuen) was equally impressive, giving up just one earned run on three hits in the complete game effort.

Fitchburg State would score the lone run of the contest in the third inning of play as junior Ashley Forgues (Fitchburg, Mass./Fitchburg) started the inning off with a double to left center, moved to third on fielding error and came around to score on a ground out to second base by freshman Tori Cyrus (Everett, Mass./Everett) to take the 1-0 lead.

That would be all the scoring the Falcons would need as Whiting would allow just two more hits throughout the rest of the contest en-route to her first shutout on the season. With the win, Fitchburg State improves to 7-12 on the season, while Eastern Nazarene fell to 6-18.

Offensively for Fitchburg State, Forgues finished 2-for-3 with a double, one run scored and a stolen base, while sophomore Amanda Whitelaw (Flemington, N.J./Hunterdon Central) registered the other Falcon hit. For the Lions, juniors Cayla Clinkscale (Winchendon, Mass./Murdock Middle) and Abigail Moore (Sheridan Calif./Valley Christian) and freshman Sterling Marino (North Kingstown, R.I./North Kingstown) finished with one hit each.

Fitchburg State 3, Eastern Nazarene 0 (Game 2)

In the nightcap, Fitchburg State posted three runs on eleven hits en-route to the 3-0 game two victory to complete the sweep.

Fitchburg State was led offensively by sophomore Colleen Flaherty (Stoughton, Mass./Stoughton) who finished a perfect 3-for-3 at the dish with a pair of RBI, while Cyrus aided the offensive surge with three singles, one run scored and an RBI. Junior Marissa Binnall (Fitchburg, Mass./Fitchburg) and Forgues were also solid, combining for two hits and a pair of runs scored.

Eastern Nazarene was paced by senior Jamie Block (Pembroke, Mass./Pembroke), Clinkscale and newcomer Britny Costa (New Bedford, Mass./Greater New Bedford Regional), who each posted one hit.

The Falcons took the lead in the bottom of the third stanza, stringing together three straight hits with two outs in the frame. Cyrus got the rally started by lacing a single to left field, followed by an infield single off the bat of Whitelaw before Flaherty delivered with a clutch runs scoring base knock to left center for the 1-0 advantage.

Fitchburg State plated two more runs in the fifth inning on run scoring singles by Cyrus and Flaherty. Forgues led off the inning with single to second base, stole second and scored on a single by Cyrus followed by a run scoring single off the bat of Flaherty for the 3-0 margin.

On the mound, junior Kerry Alcott (Groton, Mass./Groton-Dunstable) picked up the win for the Falcons, pitching the complete game three hitter, while finishing with seven K's. Costa took the loss for Eastern Nazarene, giving up three earned runs on 11 hits in six innings of work.

Fitchburg State (8-12, 1-3 MASCAC) returns to action on Thursday as it visits the Pride of Regis College for a double header starting at 3 p.m. Eastern Nazarene  (6-19, 3-7 TCCC) will travel to Western New England College on Friday for a double header starting at 3 p.m.