Box Score 1 | Box Score 2

CLERMONT, FLA. – First-year head softball coach Samantha Miller picked up her first career win on Tuesday as the State University of New York at New Paltz split a pair of games, falling to Clarkson 2-1 before defeating Hendrix 6-5 in nine innings to open up play in Florida during Spring Break.

The Hawks (1-5 overall) will play a pair of games tomorrow, starting with Wisconsin-Whitewater at 11:30 a.m. followed by a tilt with Southern Maine at 2 p.m.

Game One (Clarkson 2, New Paltz 1)
Despite out-hitting the Golden Knights, nine to six, a two-run homer by Clarkson (7-5 overall) in the third proved to be the difference in the opener.

The Hawks cut into that deficit in half, 2-1, in the bottom of the third when junior Taylor Leonette (East Patchogue, N.Y./Bellport) enjoyed an infield single which plated sophomore Taylor LaFrance (New Windsor, N.Y./Newburgh Free Academy). LaFrance reached base with a triple.

Offensively, sophomore Shannon Fee (Port Jefferson, N.Y./Earl L. Vandermeulen) finished 2-for-3 with a double while junior pitcher Lauren Capello (New City, N.Y./Albertus Magnus) helped her own cause with a 2-for-3 performance.

In the circle, Capello tossed all seven frames and fanned eight Warriors while giving up six hits and not allowing a walk.

Game Two: New Paltz 6, Hendrix 5 (9 innings)
Tied at five in the top of the ninth, Fee drove home the game-winning run to score freshman Julia DiSpignia (New Windsor, N.Y./Newburgh Free Academy) as the Hawks held on for their first win of the season.

New Paltz jumped out to a 4-0 lead over the Warriors (10-9 overall) after four innings. The Hawks scored twice on an error in the third and followed in the fourth with two more as junior Julia Perhacs (Robbinsville, N.J./Robbinsville) ripped an RBI single to center and LaFrance tacked on a run-scoring double to right.

Unfortunately, Hendrix was able to knot the game up at 4-4 in the seventh before New Paltz reclaimed the lead extra innings, 5-4, behind an Alexa Mastando (Miller Place, N.Y./Rocky Point) run-scoring single.

In the bottom of the eighth, the Warriors knotted the game up at 5-5 before Fee came through with the game-clinching hit in the next frame.

Overall, the Hawks registered 10 hits with LaFrance and senior Fallon Spriggs (Kingston, N.Y./Kingston) both turning in 2-for-4 days.

Senior Kiersten Carlomagno (Commack, N.Y./Commack) tossed the first 6 2/3 innings, scattering eight hits while Capello came on in relief and threw the final 2 1/3 frames, earning the win, while giving up just one hit and one run.