HUDSON, N.H. -- First year shortstop Allie Mulhern (Westford, Mass.) had three hits and knocked in three runs to lead the Simmons University softball team to a 10-2 game one victory, while sophomore pitcher Hailey Yabroudy (Amherst, N.H.) hurled a one-hit five-inning shutout to earn an 8-0 win in the nightcap over visiting Rivier University today in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference doubleheader played at Presentation of Mary Academy in Hudson, N.H. The Sharks improve to 12-20 overall and 6-2 in league play, while the Raiders fall to 5-19 and 1-9.

The Simmons offense rapped out 23 hits, while the pitching staff allowed just six knocks and held Rivier to a paltry .150 (6-40) batting average.

Mulhern was 3-5 with three runs scored for the Sharks, while first year starting pitcher Maddie Castigliego (Bristol, R.I.) hit a double and a single to knock in a pair of runs and score twice.  Junior center fielder Lauren Del Vacchio (Murrieta, Calif.) drove in five runs with four hits, including a double, while sophomore right fielder Danielle Carson (Ashland, Mass.) collected three hits and drove in two runs and sophomore left fielder Ivy Vann (Bend, Ore.) doubled and singled twice to go with an RBI.

The Sharks wasted no time in game one, scoring four runs in the top of the first when Vann and Christie Bott (Seaford, N.Y.) each singled with one out to set up a run-scoring single off the bat of senior first base Dom Ortiz (Lawrence, Mass.) to put the visitors on the board. Sophomore second base Marissa Santoro (Franklin, Mass.) reached on an error to bring in another run, before Castigliego helped her own cause with a two-run double to give Simmons a 4-0 lead.

The Sharks put up another four-spot in the top of the third to take an 8-0 advantage. The first three batters reached for Simmons in the frame to set up an RBI single off the bat of Mulhern and a run-scoring bases on balls drawn by Carson to increase the Sharks' lead to 6-0. Del Vacchio doubled home a pair of runs to cap the inning and give Simmons an 8-0 cushion. 

The Raiders cracked the scoring column in the bottom of the third when junior Kasey Smith (Hopkinton, N.H.) cracked a double and came around to score on a two-out single from senior Mikayla Ramsdell (Salem, N.H.) to cut the deficit to 8-1 after three innings of play. Rivier added another run in the fifth when first year Nicole Capra (Lowell, Mass.) struck a leadoff single and two outs later came around to score on an RBI single from Ramsdell to make it 8-2. 

The Sharks restored their eight-run margin with a pair of runs in the sixth. Simmons loaded the bases with no outs when Santoro and Castigliego each ripped back-to-back singles to begin the frame, before first year third base Alex Morang (Windham, Maine) drew a walk to put a runner on every base. Mulhern came through with a two-run single to give the Sharks a 10-2 lead, which held up to halt the contest after six innings due to the eight-run mercy rule.

Castigliego (7-5) earned the victory after yielding two runs on five hits and a walk to go with a pair of strikeouts for Simmons, while junior Courtney Trahan (Brooklyn, Conn.) (1-3) was pinned with the loss for the Raiders after allowing four runs (two earned) on four hits in addition to striking out a batter.

The Sharks scored five runs in the first two innings of game two and put the game away with three more in the fifth.

Del Vacchio stroked a single to lead off the contest, before Vann belted a double to put Del Vacchio on third to set up a sacrifice fly off the bat of Bott to put Simmons on the scoreboard. Vann later scored on an error and the Sharks led by two after one. Morang opened the second with a single and later scored on an RBI single off the bat of Carson. A run-scoring groundout from Del Vacchio and a single from Vann plated the fifth run to give Simmons a comfortable margin after two innings. 

Yabroudy did her part, allowing just two baserunners for the game and set down the final 12 Rivier batters in order to close out the game. The Sharks scored three times in the fifth to make it 8-0 to halt the game after a scoreless fifth from Yabroudy. Morang gave Simmons a 6-0 advantage with a run-producing single, before Mulhern was hit by a pitch and Carson reached on a single to load the bases for Del Vacchio. The junior came through with a two-run single to set the score at 8-0.

Yabroudy improved to 4-8 after five complete innings and struck out a batter, while sophomore Kellie Kennedy (Hudson, N.H.) (2-8) gave up eight runs (five earned) on 11 hits and fanned a pair of batters.