PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Three Rhode Island College pitchers held the Keene State College softball team to three runs in 14 innings as the Anchorwomen used three crooked numbers offensively to sweep the Owls 5-2 and 4-1 in the Little East Conference doubleheader finale for both teams Saturday afternoon at the Dayna A. Bazar Complex.

Records

• Keene State:  14-24, 2-14 LEC
• Rhode Island College:  12-14, 6-10 LEC

How It Happened – Game One
RIC scored two in the first to jump out quickly and then answered both times KSC scored as they took the opener 5-2.  A key sequence in the game came in the fourth inning, as Megan Blanchette doubled home Sara Cote with one out to bring the Owls within a run at 3-2.  Blanchette then moved to third on a wild pitch as KSC had the tying run on the doorstep, which was followed by a walk to Mia Ferry.  However, a strikeout and a pop up to second stranded a pair and kept Keene State trailing.  Rhode Island College immediately got both runs back to go up 5-2, and that more or less told the story as the Owls left seven on base and were playing catch-up for the entirety of the game.  KSC brought the tying run to the plate with two outs in both the sixth and seventh innings, but remained unable to cash in, with four of their seven left on base coming in the last two frames.

The Anchorwomen started fast, taking a 2-0 lead after one thanks to an RBI double from Cassidy Schoen three batters into the bottom half of the first before an infield base hit by Alexis Boyce later in the frame.  KSC got one back in the second on Liv Whittier's first collegiate home run, but surrendered an unearned run (one of three in the game) in the bottom half to trail 3-1 after two as they could not sustain momentum.  A shutdown inning remained elusive in the fourth, also, as they went from looking at a possible tie to trailing by three in that inning alone.  RIC's final three runs in the game were unearned.

Alexis Blanchette (1-6) got the start in the circle for Keene State and took the loss, allowing three runs (two earned) on four hits in two innings.  She walked two and struck out one.

Abby Kidd improved to 6-8 with a complete game, allowing two runs on five hits with three walks and eight whiffs for the Anchorwomen.  Avery Katz (4-4, 2B, 2 R) had four of her team's nine hits out of the top spot in the order.  Schoen doubled and drove home a run as RIC, who was also without a chance at the Little East tournament, ended a four-game losing streak.

Whittier homered while Blanchette and Meghan Moran each doubled, but the Owls were limited to just two singles otherwise and five hits total in the game.

How It Happened – Game Two
In a low-scoring affair that saw KSC grab a 1-0 lead in the top of the third, a four-run fifth for the Anchorwomen wound up being the difference as they won 4-1 on just three hits thanks to a key two-out, bases-clearing triple by Katz, the only extra-base hit by either team.  The Owls were held to five singles in the game, two of which came from Molly Murray (2-4, R) in the leadoff spot.  It was her speed that helped give KSC a lead, as she singled to shortstop with one out in the top of the third, swiped second, and then scored on Megan Blanchette's two-out base hit to center.  Alexis Blanchette was then hit with a pitch to load the bases, but a fielder's choice grounder to short stranded three, and wound up being Keene State's last big chance in the game as Tatiana Burcy struck out five and allowed just two hits over the final four innings.  She also induced six ground ball outs.

Lilah Demmy could not have been any better to start, retiring the first 13 batters including seven straight after KSC took a 1-0 lead.  However, trouble came in the fifth when Katelyn Ashe broke up the no-hitter with a one-out single.  Boyce followed with a walk and Amanda Conti an RBI hit as Demmy and the Owls went from cruising to hoping to preserve a tie.  Keene State seemingly should have been out of the inning at 1-1 after Alexis LeBelle's grounder to short, but a miscue prolonged the inning and ultimately hurt in a big way as No. 9 batter Paige Jones walked to put three on before Katz cleared the bases with a game-changing triple.

Now leading 4-1, Burcy (4-3) sent the Owls down in order in the sixth and seventh, and the final eight overall, to lock up RIC's third sweep of a league team (Western Connecticut State University, University of Massachusetts-Boston).

KSC had chances early, but stranded seven runners including two in the first and three in the third, and wound up being held to two runs or fewer in both ends of the doubleheader and for the 20th time on the season.

Demmy (7-9) allowed four runs (one earned) on just three hits in six innings, but took the loss.  She walked two and struck out four.

Around the Horn

• Cote finishes with a team-high .375 batting average, three home runs, 21 RBI, and a .477 on-base percentage on the season.  Murray hit at a .358 clip.
• KSC had a 3.77 team ERA on the season, led by Carissa Miller's 3.18 mark.  Opponents pitched to a 2.75 ERA against the Owls' offense.
• Keene State is 1-5 in their last six against Rhode Island College after beating them 14 consecutive times previously.

Up Next

• Both teams' seasons are over.  The Owls began the season 8-1, but lost 23 of their final 29.  They will aim to gain more experience heading into the 2023 season, where head coach Carrah Fisk Hennessey needs one win to reach 100 at KSC.
• Under interim head coach Mary Holt-Kelsch in her first year, the Anchorwomen miss the LEC tournament (due to a head-to-head tiebreaker having been swept by Plymouth State University) for the seventh consecutive season.