Boston, Mass. (May 4, 2024) – The Golden Bears concluded their regular season with a doubleheader in Boston, Massachusetts, against the Leopards of Wentworth Institute of Technology. Game one saw the Leopards jump out to a quick 2-0 lead. The Golden Bears tied it at two in the third. However, the Leopards answered in the bottom of the inning and held on for a 3-2 win. Jess Rowe had the game-winning home run for the Leopards. Rowe also earned the win on the mound by pitching seven innings, giving up two earned runs, and striking out three batters. Game two saw a pitching battle between Evelyn Picone and Julie Schriver. Picone won the battle, with Taylor Keegan having the sole RBI of the game in the top of the seventh. The Golden Bears won 1-0. Evelyn Picone pitched seven innings, giving up no earned runs, four hits, and striking out one batter to earn the win.

Records:

Western New England: 24-12 (11-5)

Wentworth Institute of Technology: 23-17 (9-7)

Game 1: Wentworth Institute of Technology 3, Western New England 2

Game one started with the Golden Bears getting two batters on base, but the Leopards' pitcher, Jess Rowe, got out of the jam. In the bottom of the first, Kyla Igawa doubled with a runner on second and no outs. That brought Kaitlin Pettenger home, and the score was 1-0. Jess Rowe then tripled to right-center field for the Leopards, and the lead was 2-0, with no outs in the bottom of the first. Ava Blanchard then got two of the next three batters to strike out, and the Golden Bears were out of the inning. The top of the second saw the Golden Bears get a runner on but no runs. 

The Leopards got a leadoff single. However, Blanchard got two more strikeouts and a flyout to end the inning. That gave momentum to the Golden Bears. With one out and a runner on second, Kailey Carrano sent a hit flying over the right-center field fence to tie the game at two. Taylor Keegan scored on the home run. That home run made history for Kailey Carrano, who became the all-time leader in career RBIs for the Golden Bears. Jess Rowe answered Carrano with a one-out solo home run to left field in the bottom of the third. The Golden Bears now trailed 3-2 after three innings of play.

The top of the fourth saw the Golden Bears get two runners on, but no runs scored. Blanchard answered by getting the Leopards out one, two, three in the bottom of the inning. Jess Rowe let one Golden Bear batter on base in the fifth. However, Rowe would not let up a third run. Blanchard let up a hit in the fifth, as well. However, no runs were scored by the Leopards. The top of the sixth saw a one, two, three inning for the Golden Bears. The bottom of the inning saw the leadoff hitter get on for the Leopards, but no runs and the Golden Bears had one more opportunity. In the top of the seventh, Rowe got the first two Golden Bear batters to ground out. The third batter walked, but then Rowe got the final batter to pop out, and the Leopards won 3-2.

Around the Diamond:

• Kailey Carrano and Alex Ferriouolo led the Golden Bear offense by both going two-for-three, with Carrano hitting a two-run home run.
• The Kailey Carrano home run was the only extra-base hit for the Golden Bears and was the Golden Bear career RBI record-setting hit.
• Kaitlin Pettenger and Jess Rowe led the Leopards by both going 2-for-3. Rowe collected two RBIs.
• Kaitlin Pettenger and Kyla Igawa both hit doubles. Jess Rowe hit a triple and a home run during game one. 
• Ava Blanchard pitched six innings, letting up three earned runs and striking out five batters.
• Jess Rowe earned the win for the Leopards by pitching seven innings, letting up two earned runs, and striking out three batters.
• The Leopards won game one 3-2.

Game 2: Western New England 1, Wentworth Institute of Technology 0

Evelyn Picone and Julie Schriver were the pitchers for game two for the Golden Bears and Leopards, respectively. The top of the first saw two Golden Bears get on base but no runs. Picone then sat the Leopards down one, two, three. The top of the second saw a Golden Bear get on base due to an error by the Leopards' defense. However, no runs scored. Once again, Picone got the Leopards out one, two, three in the second. The third saw another Golden Bear get on base but would not score. The Leopards started the third with a double and a single. However, Madison Mason threw out a Leopard runner, who tried to steal third. Then, Picone got the final two outs to get out of the jam.

The top of the fourth was the same for the Golden Bears, with getting a runner on but no run. The Leopards followed that with a single, but the runner would not come home, and the game was tied at zero after four innings of play. The top of the fifth saw Schriver strike out the first batter. Then, the Golden Bears got a single. However, the runner would not get home. The bottom of the inning saw two Leopard batters get on. However, a groundout and a double play by the Golden Bears ended the Leopards' chance. The top of the sixth saw the Golden Bears get a runner on. However, no runs were scored again. Then, Picone sat the Leopards down one, two, three for the third time that game. The top of the seventh saw the Golden Bears get a run. Marley Rodriguez started the inning with a leadoff double. Then, after a sacrifice bunt by Shea McDaniel moved Rodriguez to third, Taylor Keegan grounded out to second. However, Rodriguez scored to give Keegan the potentially game-winning RBI. In the bottom of the seventh, Picone sat the Leopards down one, two, three once again to secure the 1-0 win for the Golden Bears. 

Around the Diamond:

• The Golden Bears had three hits in game two. Taylor Keegan, Gracie Hemstock, and Marley Rodriguez each had a hit.
• Marley Rodriguez had the only extra-base hit for the Golden Bears. It was a double in the seventh inning.
• Taylor Keegan had the game-winning RBI.
• The Leopards had four hits, with Julie Schriver leading the way by going two-for-two.
• Julie Schriver had the only extra-base hit for the Leopards, with a double in the third inning.
• Julie Schriver pitched seven innings, gave up three hits, one earned run, and struck out three batters.
• Evelyn Picone earned the win for the Golden Bears by pitching seven innings, letting up four hits, no earned runs, and striking out one batter.
• The Golden Bears won game two 1-0.

Up Next:

• The Golden Bears will travel back to Springfield to host their first-round playoff game on Wednesday, May 8, 2024, with the opponent and time yet to be determined.
• The Leopards will travel to Endicott College for their first-round game against Roger Williams University at 1:00 PM.