Box Score MANSFIELD, Conn.--Sara Bracken was 2-for-4 with four RBI, and Mariah Crisp struck out 15 in a complete game effort as the Keene State College softball team upset Plymouth State University 5-4 in the Little East Conference tournament opener for both teams.
Keene State (16-17) got a bit of revenge on the Panthers, who had taken both regular season meetings, 7-1 and 6-3, back on April 24.
It was the Panthers who got on the board first, as Masha Lange led off with a walk and scored on Bekah Jackson's double to left-center. Jackson came around on a single to short Sam Hebert.
The Owls responded in the top of the third. With one out, Kayle Votto singled up the middle, moving all the way to third on Stephanie Long's double to left field. Bracken was the next batter, and she promptly hit her first career homer over the fence in left for a 3-2 KSC lead.
PSU took the lead back in the bottom half of the inning. The Panthers loaded the bases with a single and two walks, and Katie Kennard made it a 4-3 game with a double to right-center. The would be the last hit the Panthers would get, as Crisp allowed one runner past first base the rest of the game. The sophomore set PSU down in order in the fourth and fifth, and struck out Cynthia Barata and Julie Royer with a runner on second to end the sixth.
Meanwhile, the Owls tied the game in the sixth when Aliza Guerrero hit her team leading fifth home run of the season to left to knot the score at 4-4. It was Guerrero's third home run in her last six games.
KSC went ahead for good in the top of the seventh with a two out rally. Pinch hitter Anna Glassman lined a single down to left field, and Bracken delivered the go-ahead run with a double to right. Crisp slammed the door shut, striking out Lange, Watusa, and Jackson to end the game.
The Owls will face Western Connecticut State at 12 noon on Saturday. The Colonials were 8-0 winners over UMass-Dartmouth in their first game. Plymouth State went on to defeat top seed Eastern Connecticut State in an elimination game later in the day on Friday. The Panthers will play the loser of Keene State/Western Connecticut State in another elimination game on Saturday, scheduled for 2 p.m.
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