Softball swept in doubleheader, looks to fight back in next game

Sophomore+Leiandra+Wilson+looks+to+round+third+base+and+head+to+home+plate.

Courtesy\Hawks Athletics

Sophomore Leiandra Wilson looks to round third base and head to home plate.

Devon Sherman, Crier Staff

The Saint Anselm Hawk’s softball team lost two tough games this weekend to the University of New Haven. The Hawks lost the doubleheader to New Haven 4-0 and 8-2.

During the first game, senior Sam Hennequin pitched 6.0 innings. She gave up 5 hits, 4 earned runs, and 2 walks but dominated with 10 strikeouts. Hennequin allowed the 4 runs in the first but after that shut down the Chargers until the end.

On the offensive side of the ball, the Hawks got close to nothing from their starters. The Hawks managed just 2 hits during the entire game. Sadly, this was not enough to help their pitcher.

The Hawks failed to take advantage of their batting time. Quick at bats allowed the opposing pitcher to stay fresh.

The Hawks two hits came from junior outfielder Amanda Bickford and freshman outfielder Erin Thompson.

On the other side, New Haven got massive help from their sophomore centerfielder Sierra Whitlock, who hit a home run and drove in 2 runs. Junior shortstop Julie Devlin had 2 hits and drove in 2 runs. Freshman pitcher Megan Butts pitched a complete game giving up only two hits and one walk. She also had three strike outs.

The difference for the Hawks was not being able to take the freshman pitcher for New Haven deep into counts. Hennequin pitched 110 pitches compared to 85 pitches for Butts.

In their second game, the Hawks lost 8-2. They were led by freshman pitcher Morgan Perry who managed one strikeout but gave up 13 hits, 8 runs, and 2 walks.

Perry had a rough outing giving up a solo shot to left field to start off the game. The Hawks hit better but not enough to contend in this game.

The problem the Hawks had was similar to that of the first game. They did not go deep into counts and were only able to get 2 runs on 5 hits. The Hawks were led by freshman third baseman Maggie Murphy who had 2 hits and two runs scored. They also had help from junior first baseman Shannon McLaughlin, who had one hit and one RBI.

The Chargers on the other hand were led by Julie Devlin and Sierra Whitlock. Devlin had 2 hits, 2 runs scored, and one RBI. Whitlock matched Devlin almost perfectly on the stat sheet where she had two hits, one RBI, and a walk.

The Chargers’ pitcher was Kylie Stonebraker who pitched a complete game going 7.0 innings, giving up 5 hits, and two runs. She struck out three batters. The Hawks were not able to take the freshman pitcher from Virginia deep into counts. Perry pitched 115 pitches compared to 83 pitches from Stonebraker.

The Hawks need to work on their batting and try to take the opposing pitchers deep into counts to tire them out. The Hawks will head to Southern New Hampshire University on Tuesday for their next game.

Saint Anselm will want to be cautious about who will pitch the next game. It is likely that Hennequin and Perry will still be resting their arms from the weekend.

The Hawks could look to Shannon McLaughlin to pitch in their upcoming game. Although she primarily plays first base, McLaughlin has pitched in the past and may be the third pitcher they need.