SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (April 17, 2025) – WNE welcomed the Keene State College Owls to campus on Thursday for a nonconference showdown at Golden Bear Softball Park. The Golden Bears would put up two runs in the second and eight in the third to win game one of the doubleheader 10-1 in five innings. WNE then put up four runs in the first and third innings to power them past the Owls 11-2 in five innings of game two.

Game 1: Western New England 10, Keene State 1 (5 Innings)

Evelyn Picone started game one of the doubleheader in the pitching circle for the Golden Bears and would sit down the first three batters faced one, two, three, with a strike out versus the second batter. Marissa Strzegowski would enter the pitching circle for the Owls. Strzegowski would face three batters and get all three out to end the first tied 0-0. Picone would handle the Owls' batters the same way Picone did in the first inning, gaining one more strikeout on the second batter in the inning. The bottom of the second saw the Golden Bears get the bats started. With runners on first and third and one out, Evelyn Picone sent a sacrifice fly ball to center field, which brought Alex Ferriouolo home, and WNE led 1-0. Then, Ava Barnhart doubled into right-center field, and WNE led 2-0. Strzegowski would get out of the inning without letting up another run, but the damage was done by the Golden Bears. Picone would get the first two outs of the top of the third inning, which included a third strikeout. The Owls battled, hitting two singles. However, Picone would get the final batter out and keep the Owls scoreless. The Golden Bears added to their lead in the bottom of the third. WNE scored eight in the third. It would all happen with two outs. It started with Kim Baumann hitting a single to the shortstop. That drove in Gracie Hemstock, and they led 3-0. Evelyn Picone then singled to shallow center field and scored Riley Kane. The Golden Bears would then load the bases for Shea McDaniel, who singled through the left side of the infield, and that extended the Golden Bear lead to 5-0 with Kim Baumann scoring. Olivia Souers would enter the pitching circle for the Owls after that. Marley Rodriguez was the next batter to get on base and drive a run home. Rodriguez reached first on an error and drove home Evelyn Picone. Then, Angelees Carrasquillo looped a single down the right-field line to score Ava Barnhart and Shea McDaniel. WNE led 8-0. Gracie Hemstock followed with a single. Rodriguez and Carrasquillo scored on the single, and WNE led 10-0. Sours got the following batter out, and the teams entered the fourth inning. Brianna Cardona would replace Picone in the pitching circle. Cardona saw four Owls' batters and only let up one single, getting the other three batters out to keep the Owls scoreless. Sours would answer in the bottom of the fourth by getting each WNE batter out that Sours faced. That brought the teams to the top of the fifth and the Owls' last chance to extend the game past five innings. The first batter got on before Cardona got the next two outs. However, the Owls rallied to get a run. Molly Murray singled to shortstop and scored Kalle Halvorsen. WNE's lead was now 10-1. Cardona would get the final out two batters later and secured WNE the 10-1 victory versus the Owls.

Around the Diamond:

• The Golden Bears were led at the plate by Gracie Hemstock, Riley Kane, and Ava Barnhart, each having two hits.
• Hemstock picked up two RBIs and had a double. Barnhart had one RBI and the other double for the Golden Bears.
• Evelyn Picone and Brianna Cardona combined to let up only five hits and one run and struck out four batters to earn the win for the Golden Bears.
• The Owls had five batters each get a hit.
• Molly Murray drove in the lone run for the Owls.
• The two Owls' pitchers let up ten hits, four earned runs, and ten total runs.
• The Golden Bears defeated the Owls 10-1 in five innings.

Game 2: Western New England 11, Keene State 2 (5 Innings)

Game two had a very different start than game one. The Owls would grab two runs in the top of the first to take a 2-0 lead. Liv Whittier would get on second due to a throwing error from the Golden Bears. Then, Molly Murray hit a single toward the shortstop and beat out the throw to first. That hit scored Whittier, and the Owls led 2-0 going into the bottom of the first. WNE answered Keene State's two runs with four of their own. Riley Kane started the run-scoring with a two-run single through the right side of the infield. The hit scored Rodriguez and Carrasquillo. Kane would then score on a Kim Baumann triple to deep right field. The Golden Bears got their final run thanks to an Evelyn Picone single that hit the pitcher. That brought Baumann home, and WNE led 4-2 after the first inning. The top of the second saw Riley Kane give up a walk but got the other three batters faced out, and WNE still had a two-run lead. The Golden Bears added to their lead in the bottom of the second thanks to a Gracie Hemstock sacrifice fly ball to center field. That scored Shea McDaniel, and WNE led 5-2 after Shay Webb would get the final WNE batter to ground out to third. Kane would get the three Owls' batters out in order in the top of the third. Olivia Souers would then enter the game in the pitching circle for the Owls in the bottom of the third. The Golden Bears added four more runs in the third. Ava Barnhart got it started with a double to left center field. That brought Evelyn Picone through home to give WNE a 6-2 lead. Then, Shea McDaniel got on base via a throwing error. The throw went over first base, bringing Alex Ferriouolo and Ava Barnhart home. WNE led 8-2. Souers would get a second out before Angelees Carrasquillo singled up the middle of the infield to move McDaniel home, and WNE led 9-2 going into the beginning of the fourth inning. Ava Blanchard entered the pitching circle for the Golden Bears to start the fourth inning. Blanchard struck out the first two batters faced and got the final batter to ground out to third. In the bottom of the fourth, Sours would get two outs against the Golden Bears before WNE extended their lead by two runs. Shea McDaniel sent a looping single into right field, landing just to the left of the foul line and bringing Evelyn Picone and Alex Ferriouolo home. WNE led 11-2. Sours got the next batter out, and the Owls were down to their final three outs. Blanchard walked the first batter of the fifth inning but then got the next three batters out and ended the day with a strikeout. WNE won game two 11-2 in five innings.

Around the Diamond:

• The Golden Bears were led at the plate by five batters, each having two hits in game two.
• Shea McDaniel had three RBIs, and Riley Kane had two.
• Marley Rodriguez and Ava Barnhart each had a double, and Kim Baumann hit a triple for the Golden Bears.
• Riley Kane and Ava Blanchard combined for five innings pitched, no earned runs, two runs, and four strikeouts to earn WNE the win.
• The Owls accumulated two hits, with Molly Murray batting in a run and Elyse Picard having the other hit for the Owls.
• The Owls' pitchers gave up twelve hits, eleven runs, and nine earned runs.
• The Golden Bears won game two 11-2 in five innings.

Coach's Corner:

Head coach Amanda Novak was asked what the key was to the team's bats catching fire today and the team scoring 21 runs in between the two games. "I think the plan was just to put up runs every inning, and I think they executed well. I think our defense lacked a little bit today, but that's just a communication thing that needs to be adjusted. I think allowing all four pitchers to pitch today was also really good. I think it gets them ready for a big conference doubleheader tomorrow. I was really happy with how we hit the ball. It took everybody, and everybody produced," Novak stated. When asked what it will take to get the two wins tomorrow versus Gordon College, coach Novak noted that the team needs to "Continue to do what we're doing right now. I think we have a lot of momentum in our corner, and we just gotta continue to hit the ball well. If we continue to hit the ball well, the pitching will take care of itself."

Up Next:

The Golden Bears are at home on Friday, 4/17/2025, as they play host to a conference clash with Gordon College at 2:30 pm and 4:30 pm. The Golden Bears are looking to extend their five-game win streak over the Fighting Scots in that doubleheader on Friday.