The University of Maine at Presque Isle softball team have opened its season by winning three of four in action last week.
The Owls split a doubleheader against UM-Farmington Saturday in games played at the Mahaney Dome on the UM-Orono campus. On Sunday, they swept Daniel Webster in a twinbill played at the Hampshire Dome in Milford, N.H.
UMPI lost Saturday’s opener, 12-4. The game was tied after six innings, thanks to Amanda Allen’s two-run single in the bottom of the inning, but the Beavers scored eight times in the seventh to come out on top.
The Owls came back in the second game to win, 5-3. Jordi Legassie, a freshman from Presque Isle, supplied the big hit with a two-run homer to tie the game in the third. Dinah Bilodeau had an RBI double and Hannah Williams provided a run-scoring single in the bottom of the fourth to lead to the final margin.
“What we had in that game was a perfect example of a team effort. Everyone made an impact. It’s exciting to see these girls buy into the program and see the fruits of their labor on game day,” said UMPI head coach Sara Shaw.
The following day, the Owls crossed the border to New Hampshire for two games against Daniel Webster. UMPI used solid defense and an explosive offense to take both, 13-0 and 10-1. Both games were called after five innings due to the run rule.
In the opener, the Owls benefitted from the wildness of Daniel Webster pitchers. They surrendered 20 walks in the contest. Williams, Bilodeau and Katie Patenaude had a hit apiece for the winners, with Williams scoring three times and Patenaude driving in two. Sara Packard struck out nine batters in her five innings of work.
In game two, Williams was the team’s only repeat hitter, going 2 for 2, while Patenaude, Dalynn Jacobs and Hannah Craig all knocked in two runs apiece. Packard tossed a two-hitter to win her second game of the day.
“It’s a great feeling for all involved when you can open your season winning three out of four games,” Shaw said. “You can’t ask for much better than that. The girls stayed focused, remained poised and went out and played the way we know they can. It was a good weekend.”
The Owls play Wheelock College and Massachusetts Maritime Academy in doubleheaders Saturday and Sunday in Massachusetts.
