PAXTON, Mass. -- Sophomores Molly Hennessey (Charlton, Mass.) and Lauren Del Vacchio (Murrieta, Calif.) were two of 10 batters with multiple hits for the Simmons College softball team in a doubleheader sweep over host Anna Maria College in Great Northeast Athletic Conference action today at AMC Softball Field in Paxton, Mass. The Sharks won game one, 18-2, and the nightcap, 14-10, to win their sixth straight games and improve to 21-15 and 15-7 in league play, while the AMCATS finish their season at 2-36 and 0-24.
Hennessey collected six hits in eight at-bats on the day, while knocking in four runs, scoring five times and stealing a base for Simmons, while Del Vacchio cranked a pair of doubles to go with her team-leading fifth home run of the year in addition to driving in four runs and scoring six. First year shortstop Marissa Santoro (Franklin, Mass.) and sophomore third base Dom Ortiz (Lawrence, Mass.) each rapped out four hits and each doubled and homered. Santoro also plated three runs and scored three times, while Ortiz knocked in a pair of runs and scored twice. First year left fielder Ivy Vann (Bend, Ore.) tripled, knocked in three runs and scored four times, while first year right fielder Sydney DeVogt (Exeter, N.H.) and sophomore designated player Alex Soqui (Acushnet, Mass.) each had three hits and knocked in four runs.
Senior Jacqueline Lapierre (Worcester, Mass.) drove in six runs with four hits, including a double and a home run to lead Anna Maria. Junior Kayla Magierowski (Brimfield, Mass.) was 3-6 with a triple, two runs scored and two RBI and sophomore Annie Melanson (Grafton, Mass.) finished going 3-6 with two runs scored.
The Sharks scored five runs in the top of the second of game one and followed the frame with two runs in the third to take a 7-0 lead. Soqui drove in two runs with a double, while first year first base Hailey Yabroudy (Amherst, N.H.) drove in a run with a single. Santoro highlighted the inning with a three-run homer to give Simmons a 5-0 lead. The AMCATS got two runs back in the bottom of the third on an RBI double from Lapierre and a ground out by junior Sabrina Carreira (West Hartford, Conn.) to cut the deficit to 5-2.
Simmons put the game out of reach when it saw 15 batters step in the box and 10 of them score in the fourth inning to give the Sharks a 17-2 advantage. Del Vacchio keyed the outburst with a three-run homer, while Soqui and DeVogt each stroked two-run singles during the inning. Vann and Hennesey also contributed with run-scoring singles. The Sharks added another run in the fifth to make it 18-2.
Senior starting pitcher Juliet Nelson (Cumberland, R.I.) improved to 13-6 after yielding two runs on five hits and striking out a batter for Simmons.
The Sharks put five runs on the board in the first two innings of game two to take a 5-0 lead. Vann cracked a run-scoring triple, before Hennessey plated her with a single to set up a two-run home run off the bat of Ortiz to give Simmons a 4-0 lead. Hennessey drove in another run in the second to give the visitors a 5-0 cushion.
Magierowski put Anna Maria on the board with a run-scoring single up the middle to make it 5-1.
Simmons seemed to be cruising with two runs in the third and five in the fourth to take a 12-1 advantage, heading into the bottom of the fourth inning. DeVogt and Del Vacchio each plated a run with a single in the third, while sophomore Bridget Garach (West Hartfortd, Mass.) struck a run-producing double in addition to RBI singles off the bat of Yabroudy and DeVogt in the frame. First year catcher Rachel Pfeiffer (Melrose, Mass.) and Del Vacchio each brought home single runs with a sacrifice fly.
The AMCATS clawed their way back into the game with a four-run fourth to cut the deficit to 12-5. Magierowski tripled home a run and Lapierre followed with a base hit single to plate Magierowski and keep the home team in the game. The Sharks answered with two runs in the fifth behind a run-producing ground out from junior Michaela Reeves (Reading, Mass.) and an RBI double from Santoro to give Simmons a 14-5 lead. Anna Maria put up another four-spot in the fifth to pull to within 14-9. The AMCATS loaded the bases with three straight singles from senior Hannah Trudo (Pomfret Center, Conn.), first year Yolani Doddy (Vineyard Haven, Mass.) and Magierowski, before Lapierre cracked a two-out grand slam homer to keep the home team within reach. Anna Maria tacked on one more run in the sixth when junior Victoria Falco (Marlborough, Mass.) singled down the right field line, stole second and later scored on a passed ball to set the final at 14-10.
