Box Score 1 | Box Score 2

SALEM, Va. – The State University of New York at New Paltz softball team ushered in a new era Saturday afternoon under first-year head coach Brittany Robinson at the Beach Blast in the Mountains Classic hosted by Roanoke College at the James Moyer Complex, but the Hawks fell twice in their first games of the 2014 season.
 
New Paltz lost, 7-2, to Eastern Mennonite University before falling, 9-4, to Washington (Md.) College in the nightcap.
 
The Hawks drop to 0-2 overall with the losses, while Eastern Mennonite rises to 1-4 overall and Washington (Md.) advances to 2-0 overall. New Paltz closes out the Beach Blast in the Mountains Classic tomorrow with a 9 a.m. game against the Catholic University of America followed by an 11 a.m. contest versus Kean University. Eastern Mennonite takes on Catholic tomorrow at 11 a.m., followed by a 1 p.m. tilt against Centenary (N.J.) College. Washington (Md.) faces Allegheny (9 a.m.) and Roanoke (1 p.m.) tomorrow.
 
Against Eastern Mennonite, senior pitcher Amber Carozza (Milton, N.Y./Marlboro) scattered seven hits and struck out six batters in the loss, while junior third baseman Meg Brewer (Bayport, N.Y./Bayport-Blue Point) and senior first baseman Chelsea Kull (Manorville, N.Y./Eastport South Manor) ignited the attack. Brewer went 2-for-3 with two RBI, while Kull batted 3-for-3 with two runs scored.
 
Both offenses erupted in the game against Washington (Md.), as the two teams combined for 23 hits and 13 runs. New Paltz, which trailed, 5-2, heading into the fifth inning, relied on a two-run frame to draw within one. Freshman pitcher Kiersten Carlomagno (Commack, N.Y./Commack) drove in Kull in that stanza before junior center fielder Noelle Grande (Massapequa Park, N.Y./Massapequa) pushed across Brewer. The Shorewomen scored once in the fifth and three times in the sixth, though, to pull out the win.
 
Carlomagno was tagged with the loss in the circle for New Paltz against Washington (Md.), allowing seven runs on nine hits and three walks while striking out one in five innings of work. Junior pitcher Christine Anderson scattered 10 hits and permitted four runs (three earned) while striking out three in the winning effort for the Shorewomen. Sophomore pitcher Sydnee Schorr was credited with the save, working the final three innings and giving up just one hit.
 
Grande keyed the Hawk attack with a 3-for-4 performance that included one run scored, one RBI and a triple. Junior catcher Shayna Burgess (Smithtown, N.Y./Commack) went 2-for-3 with a triple, while sophomore shortstop Jordan Fiore (Mount Sinai, N.Y./Mount Sinai) batted 2-for-4 with one run scored.
 
Senior first baseman Lauren Dockrill paced Washington (Md.) with a 3-for-4 afternoon at the plate, scoring three times and driving in one run. Senior catcher Kylie Nottingham (2-for-3, three RBI, two runs scored) and junior shortstop Suzanne Patinella (2-for-2, two RBI) also had multi-hit performances for the Shorewomen.