FRAMINGHAM, Mass. -- The Bridgewater State Universiry softball team swept Framingham State University in a Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) doubleheader on Saturday afternoon at Maple Street. The Bears took the opener 15-1 in five innings before coming from behind for a 4-3 victory in the night cap.
With the victories, the Bears improve to 19-13 on the year and are now 9-5 in the MASCAC, while the Rams dip to 13-17 overall and are now 7-7 in conference play.
Bridgewater will be seeded third in next week's MASCAC Tournament.
In the opener, the Bears plated three runs in their first at bat on an RBI triple from sophomore Kelly McCarthy (Burlington, Mass.) and a two-run home run from sophomore Jackie Welch (Hubbardston, Mass.).
The Bears would tack on two more in the third on Welch's second RBI hit of the came and an RBI groundout from sophomore Meghan Cassidy (Mattapoisett, Mass.). The visitors added three more in the fourth on to open up an 8-0 lead.
The Rams got on the board in the bottom of the fourth on an RBI single from freshman Megan Downing (Hanson, Mass.) that scored sophomore Tiffanie Marsh (Tewksbury, Mass.).
The Bears put the game out of reach in the top of the fifth with seven runs highlighted by a grand slam from Welch.
McCarthy earned the victory for the Bears in the circle improving her season mark to 7-3. McCarthy allowed just one earned run on four hits without walking or striking a batter out. Junior Natasha Arseneau (Waltham, Mass.) took the loss for the Rams going five innings and allowing 15 earned runs on 16 hits with a walk.
Bridgewater State jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first inning of game two on a wild pitch and an RBI fielder's choice.
The Rams grabbed their first lead of the day in the bottom of the fourth as they pushed three runs across. Freshman Bridget McGrail (Worcester, Mass.) reached on fielder's choice allowing classmate Dayna Marchant (East Bridgewater, Mass.) to score on a throwing error by the Bears. Sophomore Kylie Boyle (Billerica, Mass.) followed with a sacrifice fly to center and Downing singled home the third run of the inning.
The Bears tied the game in the top of the fifth on an RBI triple from sophomore Courtney Leddy (Saugus, Mass.) and took the lead for good on an RBI single off the bat of senior Jocelyn Bettencourt (Plymouth, Mass.).
Sophomore Kathleen Bailey (Bayport, NY) earned the victory in game two tossing three scoreless innings of relief allowing just one hit while striking out five. Marsh took the loss for the Rams going the distance and allowing four earned runs on eight hits.
The Rams are back in action tomorrow morning with a pair of non-conference games at Brandeis University beginning at 10 a.m., while the Bears travel to UMass Dartmouth for a non-conference doubleheader on Tuesday at 3:30 p.m.