Senior Courteney Collier (Bolton, Mass.) pitched and batted fifth-seeded Simmons to a 7-4 victory over fourth-seeded Western New England Wednesday afternoon in a first-round game of the ECAC Division III New England Softball Championship.

Simmons improves to 25-15 and advances to meet top-seeded Keene State at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday, May 14. The Golden Bears end their season with a 27-18 record.

Collier (13-5) went six innings giving up seven hits and two earned runs with a walk and four strikeouts. She also went 3-for-4 with a single, double, homer, two runs scored, and four RBI. Her three-run blast highlighted a four-run fifth inning that gave the visitors a 7-2 advantage.

Junior center fielder Amanda Gould (Fremont, N.H.) and freshman left-fielder Christina Mulcahy (Cambridge, Mass.) added two hits apiece for Simmons who finished with 10 hits off three WNEC pitchers.

Western New England junior right-fielder Rachel Wyrwa went 2-for-4 with a pair of RBI doubles. Freshman center fielder Maria Francese contributed two hits and scored twice. Junior Sarah Lempicki (11-5) was the losing pitcher.

Senior Sammi Letizio (Windham, Mass.) pitched a scoreless seventh to gain her first save of the season.