Seniors Shine in Sweep of Buccaneers

Worcester, Mass. - On a sunny day to play some Saturday softball with temperatures expected to reach a high of 70 degrees with minimal winds, the Lancers looked to close out their regular season with two big wins over Mass Maritime. The Worcester State games today were played in honor of their seniors who will be playing their final home game in the Blue and Gold. The Lancers came into this contest with a record of 21-16 and a 7-5 in conference record. 

Seniors Honored:

# 2 Jacqui Schwalm (Billerica, Mass.)

# 5 Naraylee Baez (Northborough, Mass.)

#10 Jen Thorburn (Groton, Mass.)

These three seniors have had a major impact on the success of this program 0ver their careers as Lancers. The celebration of their accomplishments occurred in between games with pictures and special recognitions for each senior.

Starting pitcher for the day was Thorburn. The senior pitcher opened her day with a strike and would look to get another win to her impressive career stats. Her next pitch would see an infield error at third base. This would be followed by three infield pop-ups ending the first inning expeditiously. The Lancer's first inning would be the opposite of Mass Martine with 5 hits being recorded. With a hit total like that one ought to expect one run to be scored but this was not the case as the Lancers walked away scoreless from the inning.

The second inning would see impressive defense by 2nd baseman first year Morgan Keefe (Dracut, MA) resulting in a double play out. The inning would end with a pop fly and the Lancers would be up to bat that would see Worcester record 4 runs in the inning. The first two would come from a single rbi to the right field. The next would be scored on a double rbi to deep centerfield. The last run would come across after a single into the left field would see a runner make it home but the hitter gets caught at 2nd. 

The next couple of innings would see excellent defensive plays from both sides. At the top of the 4th, the Lancers would see two pop flys to center and left field get them a quick two outs on the board. A ball to shortstop sophomore Emma Lanpher (Charlton, Mass.) would see an out at first. The shutout would remain alive for the Lancers. An early out would be followed by a clean hit to the left field. With a runner on second an infield error would occur at the next at-bat resulting in runners on first and second.  A line drive past the Maritime infield would see one runner brought in. An infield error by the shortstop would see the bases loaded with Bella Gasbarro (Leominster, MA) up to bat. With a full count, she would record her 50th hit of the season and bring in 2 runs. Gasbarro won an athletic Rookie of the Year award for outstanding performances throughout the season this past Monday at the year end Athletics Award Banquet. The board would read 7-0 at the close of the inning.

At the top of the 6th, a solo home run would see an end to the shutout for Thorburn. The inning would end with a pop fly. At the bottom of the 6th, no runs would be scored as the Buccaneers had performed some skilled defensive work on the field. 

The top of the 7th would see two strikeouts and a pop fly making the final score read 7-1. Thorburn would end the game with seven innings pitched with only 4 hits and a single run in the game.

In game two action, the Lancers would open up with two strikeouts a quick three and out would be a positive sign for the second game of the final two game regular games series of the year. The second inning would see another quick outs for the Lancers defense. On the offensive end, they would show their talents early with 5 runs scoring in the second. An Emma Lapoint (Westfield, MA) single would see runners at 3rd and 1st. A Baez bunt would load the bases after the pitcher's choice saw her attempt to get the runner at home out. First year Bailey Tammero (Fitchburg, Mass.) would then hit a ball  to center field scoring two runs. A ground out would see one more run scored, as Baez would find her way around all the bases. Her base running is some of the best in the MASCAC and she displayed this skill once again. The scoreline would now read 3-0. Two singles would see two more runs be brought in and a ground out would end the offensive onslaught. Mass Maritime would look to bounce back and try to avoid dropping both games of the series. 

In the bottom of the 4th the Lancers would see two singles see runners on 3rd and 1st. A wild pitch would lead to 2nd and 3rd in perfect scoring position. First year Jayden Kelly (Tyngsboro, MA) drove home 2 runs. A 8-0 scoreline heading into the top of the 5th would mean that the visitors would have to score just one run for the contest to continue. Junior pitcher Emily Bartlett (Lowell, MA) would try to see out a scoreless game. She would open up with a ball in the final inning followed by a swing and a miss recording another strikeout. A quick three pitch strikeout would add another K to her total. She then would replicate the trend of getting strikeouts, with this one leading to a successful series sweep. They would secure a top 4 position and a home playoff game is scheduled to be played next Wednesday. 

Bartlett would complete the five inning game allowing just two hits in the action.

The Lancers end the regular season at 24-16, 9-5 in the MASCAC. They will host the MASCAC playoff opening round on Wednesday at 4pm versus an opponent yet to be determined.