CLERMONT, Fla. – Senior Kalle Halvorsen went 5-for-7 with a triple and five runs batted in as the Keene State College softball team's bats remained hot, beating Macalester College 8-4 before a 15-0 demolition of Worcester State University on Tuesday at the Legends Way Ballfields as part of The Spring Games.

After a suspended game and a rain out on Monday, the victories improve the Owls to 4-0 – and their mighty offense has a lot to do with it, hitting .406 (43-for-106) as a team with 11 extra-base hits.  They have scored 42 runs, including scoring multiple runs in 12 of 23 offensive innings.

Today, KSC scored early and often and never trailed, opening up a 3-0 advantage in the first in the opener against Macalester (4-5).  Elyse Picard delivered a two-run double to kick off the scoring after Anna Gostkowski walked and Halvorsen beat out a single to deep short.  Picard advanced to third on a miscue on the same play and was then driven in by Cainen Avery's groundout as KSC plated three right away.  The Scots, a 27-15 team a season ago, drew within one with a pair in the third, but the Owls tacked on three more immediately in the bottom half to remain in command.  Picard began the uprising by beating out an infield single and Abby Weiterman followed with a pulled double down the left field line to plate a run.  An error and two walks helped plate another, and Kalee Keyser was later hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to make it 6-2.

The Owls plated two more insurance runs in the bottom of the fifth to blow the game open, as Keyser singled into left and Ashley Connor followed with a base hit to right to put runners at the corners.  Connor swiped second to put two in scoring position, and Halvorsen then came through with a two-out, two-run triple to put KSC up 8-2.  Macalester got two back in the sixth to hang around, but Shay Webb finished off a complete game effort with a seven-pitch, 1-2-3 seventh.

Webb (1-0) allowed four runs (three earned) in her outing, walking two and striking out one while throwing 108 pitches.  Tess Bojorquez (1-2) allowed four hits, six runs (four earned), and walked four while taking the loss for the Scots.  The two, three, and four spots in the KSC order (Halvorsen, Picard, Weiterman) combined to go 5-for-10 with four RBI and two walks in the win.

The Owls kept things rolling in the day's second contest, pummeling the Lancers (2-3) with a complete effort that saw Jaelyn Boretti fire a five inning, one-hit shutout in her collegiate debut in the circle, striking out five in the process.  She induced seven ground ball outs and only needed to toss 77 pitches, getting plenty of offensive support in the process.  KSC again put up three right away as Gostkowski led off with a triple to deep center before scoring on a ball to short by Halvorsen that could not be handled but would have scored a run regardless.  Jaymie Kiley added a two-run double later in the inning to get the Owls off and running.  KSC then plated five in the second, all with two outs, to blow the game open.  Picard roped a two-run single into left to make it 5-0, and three consecutive singles by Weiterman, Avery, and Kiley against reliever Taylor Stuart tacked on three more as KSC recorded six hits in the frame.

While Worcester, who won 27 games last season, won the MASCAC and was coming off a 14-11 win over previously 9-0 Bowdoin College earlier in the day, could not solve Boretti, KSC just kept scoring and scoring – making it 12-0 in the third as Halvorsen, Picard, and Weiterman notched run-scoring hits consecutively.

The Owls piled on three more in the fifth to score their most runs since nearly two years to the day (March 18, 2024) when they beat the University of Mount St. Vincent 16-5 in South Carolina.
Boretti's (1-0) outing was perhaps KSC's most impressive outing in the circle yet this season, with Worcester's lone hit a leadoff single up the middle from Anna Diggins to lead off the fourth.  Just hours prior, the Lancers had tattooed a pair of Bowdoin pitchers with a 17-hit attack.

Taylor Coonan (0-1) took the loss for Worcester, allowing six runs (four earned) on five hits in 1.2 innings.  She walked one and struck out two.

KSC's offense has featured a balanced attack in the season's first week, with six different people having driven in at least five runs.  Halvorsen is a remarkable 11-for-14 with three triples so far in 2026, while Weiterman is 6-for-11 and Picard 5-for-12.  Gostkowski has a triple and home run in her 6-for-13 start.

"Shay Webb and Jaelyn Boretti were awesome today," said Owls head coach Haley Chandler.  "They stayed calm, in control, trusted their defense, and got the job done against two very good teams.  Our bats stayed hot and the energy on the bench was high, which always fuels our fire."

The Owls are back in action Thursday (March 19), completing their suspended game against 14th-ranked Simpson College at 9:00 a.m. before taking on Springfield College (3-2) at 1:45 p.m. and the State University of New York at Morrisville (0-3) at 4:00 p.m.  KSC and the Storm will resume in the bottom of the second in a 1-1 tie.