WPI Walks-Off In Game Two To Complete Sweep of Blue Softball

WORCESTER, Mass. – WPI scored two runs in the bottom of the seventh inning of game two to complete a two-game sweep of Wellesley College softball in a New England Women's & Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) doubleheader on Friday at Rooftop Field. The Engineers took game one, 7-1, and game two, 5-4. 

WPI is now 27-7 overall and remains at the top of the NEWMAC standings with a 15-1 record in conference games. Wellesley is 7-15-2 on the season and 3-10-1 in the NEWMAC.

Game 1 | WPI 7, Wellesley 1 | Final

WPI junior Mackenzie Phillips (Gill, Mass.) gave up two hits and one run, while striking out seven over six innings of work to help the Engineers cruise to a 7-1 win in game one.

First year Lindsay Ambrosino (Chelmsford, Mass.) was 2-for-3 with three runs scored and four RBI to lead WPI. Ambrosino put the hosts up 2-0 with a two-run blast in the bottom of the third inning. After Wellesley got one back on a Gen Brittingham (Aliso Viejo, Calif.) RBI triple in the top of the fourth, Ambrosino responded with a two-RBI single in the bottom half of the fourth.

The Engineers never trailed in game one, with senior Renee LeClaire (Merrimack, N.H.) and sophomore Marissa Gonzales (Oakley, Calif.) also driving in runs as part of a four-run fourth that turned a 2-1 lead into a 6-1 advantage.

Phillips carried a perfect game into the fourth before Blue first year Marisa Hensch (Carlsbad, Calif.) doubled with two outs to break-up the bid. Brittingham immediately followed with her RBI triple, but the back-to-back extra base hits were the only two hits of the game for Wellesley.

Blue senior Sydney Hopper (Newcastle, Wash.) struck out a pair but was tagged with the loss (4-7) in game one. First year Haley McMorrow (Carlisle, Mass.) gave up just two hits and one run in three innings of relief. 

Game 2 | WPI 5, Wellesley 4 | Final

Hensch and Brittingham each hit two-run home runs but Wellesley let a 4-3 lead get away when LeClaire and the Engineers walked-off with a 5-4 victory in the bottom of the seventh inning. 

Hensch hit her second home run of the season in the top of the first, lifting a blast over the leftfield wall to give the Blue a 2-0 lead. WPI senior Caraline Wood (Averill Park, NY) countered with a two-run shot of her own in the home half of the first, tying the game at 2-2. Hensch finished the nightcap 2-for-4 with two RBI and two runs scored. Wood was 3-for-3 with three RBI.

Brittingham got the lead back with a home run over the right centerfield fence in the top of the fifth inning. Brittingham finished game two 2-for-4, while junior Autumn Brown (Marshfield, Mass.) and sophomore Alyssa Hana (La Mirada, Calif.) also recorded two-hit games. 

WPI got one run back in the bottom of the fifth, scoring on an RBI double from Wood, but the Blue carried a 4-3 lead into the seventh inning. 

With WPI trailing by one, first year Hailey McCasland (Wrentham, Mass.) doubled to lead off the inning. Ambrosino pushed McCasland to third with a sacrifice, before Gonzalez doubled down the leftfield line to tie the game. After a walk to Wood, LeClaire walked-off the Engineers with an RBI single that scored Gonzalez and gave the hosts a 5-4 win. 

Phillips returned in game two, pitching 6.1 innings, striking out three a giving-up four runs (all earned). Sophomore Katie Martin (Bedford, NH) faced the final two Wellesley hitters and picked-up the win. Blue first year Hayley Moniz (Westfield, Mass.) had four strikeouts in a complete game effort.

Wellesley's Saturday, April 20, doubleheader at Clark has been postponed and will now be played on Friday, April 26, at 3:00 PM in Worcester. Wellesley will now take on Coast Guard in the team's next outing on Wednesday, April 24, at 3:00 PM. WPI will face MIT on Monday in a match-up of the NEWMAC's top-two teams.