Keene State won the opener 3-0 in eight innings thanks to late game heroics from power-hitting senior Meryl Ragaini (Seymour, Conn.), while USM fought back for the split with a 2-1 win in the second game.  Southern Maine is now 7-27 overall and 2-8 in the Little East Conference.  Keene State stands at 15-10 overall and 5-3 in the LEC. 

            Stockwell allowed just one earned run in seven solid innings for the Huskies yielding just four hits and a walk.  Three of her strikeouts game in the final inning with the Owls threatening with runners on first and second, while the Huskies clung to a narrow 2-1 lead. 

            The Owls struck first to grab a 1-0 lead in the top of the second.  With two outs, junior Molly Dussault (Weare, N.H./John Stark Regional) and sophomore Katie Newell (Shoreham, N.Y./Shoreham Wading River) tagged Stockwell for back-to-back doubles to left field.  Newell's double hit the left field fence and drove in Dussault for the Owls' lone run of the game.   After a walk, Stockwell was able to get out of the inning with a foul ball pop out.

            USM pulled even with Keene State in the bottom of the third.  With one out, senior Jesse Hutchins (Sebago, Maine/Lake Region) reached first on a fielding error and advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt from sophomore Lillian Cooper (Lamoine, Maine/Ellsworth).  Hutchins advanced to third on a wild pitch, before Stockwell drove her in with an RBI single to center field.

            Both teams were scoreless over the next two and a half innings and the score remained tied at 1-1 heading into the bottom of the sixth.  Stockwell led off the inning with a walk and took second on a sacrifice bunt from freshman Nicole Nutter (Westbrook, Maine).  The speedy Stockwell came around to score on a drop fly ball deep in the outfield to put USM ahead 2-1.  With a runner on second and one out, Keene State starter Newell was lifted in favor of freshman Mariah Crisp (Greenland, N.H./Portsmouth).  Crisp quickly retired the next two Huskies' hitters to end the inning.

            The Owls made things tense in the top of the seventh as senior Nicole Dupuis (Fitchburg, Mass.) led off the inning with a single.  Stockwell retired the next batter with her sixth strikeout of the game, before Dussault collected her second single of the game with a hit to shallow center field to put runners at first and second with just one out.  However, Stockwell was up to the task fanning the next two batters she faced for the win.

            Newell took the loss for the Owls despite a solid pitching effort.  Newell allowed two runs – both unearned – on two hits and a walk in 5.1 innings, while recording eight strikeouts. 

            In the opener, Crisp was outstanding for the Owls allowing just one hit over eight innings while record 14 strikeouts improving to 12-3 on the season.  Crisp had a no-hitter until the bottom of the eight when it was broken up by USM senior Katie Davis' (Woburn, Mass.) double to right center field.

            Hutchins was the Huskies' hard luck loser, taking the loss allowing three earned runs on seven hits.  She had three walks and three strikeouts.  Hutchins held the Owls' bats to just three hits over the first seven innings, before Keene State came alive in the eighth with four hits.

            With the score deadlocked at 0-0, freshman Stephanie Long (Salem, N.H.) started the Owls' in the eighth with a lead off single.  Long advanced to second on a wild pitch, before Hutchins recorded USM's first out with a pop up.  A single from senior Jessica Fiorenza (Wakefield, Mass./Wakefield Memorial) set up the Owls with runners at first and third and one out, before Ragaini hit her team-leading sixth home run of the season to put Keene State up 3-0 heading to the bottom of the eighth.

            Crisp continued her outstanding effort for the Owls to deliver the victory. After allowing the lead off double to Davis, Crisp retired the next three Huskies' batters in order all by strikeout.    

            Southern Maine travels to Colby College on Tuesday (4:00 p.m.) for a non-conference doubleheader.  Keene State hosts Rhode Island College on Sunday (1:00 p.m.) in a LEC doubleheader.

–cac–