Box Score 1 | Box Score 2

NEW PALTZ, N.Y. – Coming off a weekend in which it went 4-0 against State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) competition, the State University of New York at New Paltz softball team (15-8) was swept by Western Connecticut State University (8-13) in a non-conference doubleheader on Wednesday afternoon at Mary Gray Deane Field. Western Connecticut State won game one, 1-0, before downing the Hawks, 8-0, in five innings in the nightcap.

Game one featured a defensive and pitching showcase, as each team mustered just five hits and combined for just one run.

The Hawks' best opportunity to score came in the bottom of the second, as sophomore third baseman Meg Brewer (Bayport, N.Y./Bayport-Blue Point) led off the inning with a single to left field, and she was moved over on a sacrifice bunt. Sophomore center fielder Alex Verso (Commack, N.Y./Commack) then singled up the middle and advanced to second on throw, which moved Brewer over to third. Western Connecticut State turned an unorthodox 6-3-2 double play during the ensuing at-bat, with the tag at the plate ending the inning.

The Colonials broke the scoreless tie in the sixth, as Michaela Roche pushed an RBI single through the right side, plating Erin Weber. New Paltz tried to mount a rally with two outs in the seventh, as sophomore shortstop Emily Mouillesseaux (Endicott, N.Y./Union-Endicott) singled to right field, but a line out to third base ended up giving Western Connecticut State the win.

No player in game one had more than one hit, while Ashlie Morris' double served as the lone extra-base hit in the contest.

Stephanie Moss earned the win for the Colonials, scattering five hits and issuing two walks while striking out five. Sophomore pitcher Erika Traina (Bay Shore, N.Y./Bay Shore) was tagged with the loss, as she gave up one run on five hits, two hit by pitches and one walk while striking out two.

A six-run fifth for Western Connecticut ended up enacting the eight-run rule, as the Colonials took an 8-0 lead into the home half of the inning and kept the Hawks off the board.

The Colonials seized a 2-0 edge in the third, relying on RBI singles from Weber and Jessica Caturano. They broke the game open in the fifth, which was due in part to the fact that they loaded the bases with one out. Julia Bocek pushed across the inning's first run with a single to center field, and Christine Bighinatti plated another run in the team's ensuing at-bat with a single through the left side. Despite a pitching change after that second run, Western Connecticut State continued to pile on. Roche scored two runs with a double to right field, and Kylee Ruther cleared the bases with a two-run single up the middle.

New Paltz tried to keep the game going in the fifth. After two straight outs, senior center fielder Andrea Feeney (Ulster Park, N.Y./Kingston) broke up the Colonials' no-hit bid, and sophomore designated player Shayna Burgess (Smithtown, N.Y./Commack) absorbed a hit by pitch to put runners at first and second. Western Connecticut State, however, completed the sweep by inducing a line out to the pitcher.

Bocek paced the Colonial bats in game two, going 3-for-3 with one RBI and one run scored. Caturano (2-for-3, one RBI, one run scored) and Bighinatti (2-for-3, one RBI, one run scored) also pieced together multi-hit outings.

Cintorino threw five innings and permitted just two hit by pitches, two walks and one hit while striking out two. Freshman pitcher Katie Rutcofsky (Plainview, N.Y./Plainview-Old Bethpage John F. Kennedy) was saddled with the loss, allowing seven runs on 11 hits and one walk while striking out one. Senior pitcher Amber Carozza (Milton, N.Y./Marlboro) gave up one run on two hits in two-thirds of an inning of relief.

New Paltz looks to get back to its winning ways on Friday, April 12, as it hosts SUNY Geneseo in a 3 p.m. SUNYAC doubleheader.