Box Score 1 | Box Score 2

NORTH DARTMOUTH, Mass. – Olivia Albert hit a solo home run to open the scoring in the third, KSC tacked on two more, and then relied on the pitching of Alexis Blanchette as the Owls beat the University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth 3-1 in the opener of a Little East Conference doubleheader Thursday at the UMD Softball Complex.  The host Corsairs used a six-run fourth to win the second game 8-5.
 
Records

• Keene State:  2-14, 2-6 LEC
• UMass-Dartmouth:  1-10-1, 1-5 LEC

How It Happened – Game One
The Corsairs did outhit KSC 10-9, but Owl starter Alexis Blanchette did a terrific job working out of trouble and went the distance, allowing only one run while striking out six in her first victory of the season.  Her offense provided her a 3-0 lead by scoring single runs in the third, fourth, and fifth inning.  Keene State finished with nine hits in all, and seems to see their offense picking up, as they have totaled 33 hits in their past three games including the second contest of today's doubleheader.
 
Albert got the scoring started in the third inning when she took UMD starter Anna Kerwood deep for a solo shot – the second of her career joining last year's walk-off in Florida – and KSC tacked on another run in the top of the fourth with a two-out rally that saw Grace Hallett single and then score on Emma Pede's double.  Pede was making her season debut today after missing the first 14 games.  The Owls made it 3-0 in the fifth when Meghan Moran singled and later scored on Blanchette's double that helped her own cause in the circle.  UMass-Dartmouth generated a bona fide threat in the sixth while chipping their deficit to 3-1 on Sky Berube's double, but Blanchette (1-4) stranded the bases loaded after getting Leah Major to pop out to first.  UMD brought the tying run to the plate in the seventh with one out, but Hailey Lyons lined back to Blanchette, who doubled off Jill Richards to end the game.
 
Kerwood took the loss and fell to 0-2 after allowing nine hits and three earned runs while pitching all seven innings.  She fanned two.
 
Albert (2-3, HR, RBI, R, BB) and Moran (2-4, R) each had multi-hit games for KSC, who snapped an eight-game slide with the win.
 
How It Happened – Game Two
Keene State took a 2-0 lead in the opening inning and was later up 5-2 in the top of the fourth as their bats seem to be waking up, but UMass-Dartmouth put up six runs in their half of that inning to forge ahead 8-5 and eventually won by that score.  It was their first victory of the season after a frustrating start that featured two extra innings losses and four by one run.
 
Albert and Moran each had three-hit games this time around, with the former doubling in the top of the first off UMD starter Richards to provide KSC an immediate 2-0 lead.  The roles flipped in the bottom half with Richards' two-RBI single off Albert tying the game at two, but the hitting Owls restored a 4-2 lead on the third after three consecutive hits including a Moran RBI double and Albert run-scoring single.  Keene State filled the bases with one out in the fourth looking to blow the game open, but scored only once on a passed ball before a grounder and a fly out ended the inning.  It proved costly they did not add more, as the Corsairs – after scoring three runs in the first 10 innings of the doubleheader – put up six to go along with six hits in the fourth for an 8-5 lead.  KSC aided in the cause, surrendering two passed balls, one that scored a run, one wild pitch, and one error.
 
Leading by three, Richards put plenty of baserunners on – 15 in her six innings – but the Owls could not break through in the final three innings, leaving seven on base.  Perhaps their best opportunity came in the sixth when Sara Cote walked with one out and was followed with singles by Frank and Moran, putting the go-ahead run at the plate, but a foul pop and a groundout kept the score at 8-5.  Keene State also brought the tying run to the plate against Kaitlyn Shirshac after a miscue and a Hallett single, but the next two were sent down as the Owls had to settle for a split.
 
Albert (1-7) took the loss for KSC, allowing six earned runs in four innings.  Richards improved to 1-5 in the circle for UMD while Shirshac collected her first save.
 
Frank and Hallett each had a pair of hits for Keene State.  Sara Cote walked four times. 
 
Around the Horn

• Hallett has a hit in seven of the past nine games and is hitting .341 on the season, while Moran is on a five-game hitting streak and has multiple hits in each of the past three games.  Albert is up to .333 and is 7-for-10 in her last three games.
• KSC has won 37 of 50 all-time meetings, but their opening game win ended a six-game losing streak against the Corsairs.

Up Next

• Keene State hosts Western Connecticut State University (3-11, 3-7 LEC) for a twinbill beginning at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday (April 24).  The Owls are still searching for their first home win.
• The Corsairs visit Plymouth State University (9-7, 4-2 LEC) for a pair of league games on Sunday, April 25 at 12:00 p.m.