WEST HARTFORD, CT ? The University of Hartford softball team was swept by Central Connecticut State University on Tuesday afternoon at the UH Softball Field by final scores of 9-3 and 8-2.
Despite the losses, Hartford (20-24 overall) had two players break school records on the day. Senior Nikki Thompson homered in the fourth inning of the second game to become the school's all-time career leader in the category with 19. Classmate Kristie Rochette also broke the school record for career walks, drawing the 60th free pass of her career in the first inning of the second game.
Central Connecticut (17-25 overall) got solid pitching performances from Rachel Brenneman and Brittany Salvatore. Brenneman (11-10 overall) pitched the first game and gave up three runs on six hits while striking out 10 and walking one. Salvatore (1-6 overall) picked up her first win of the season in the nightcap with six strong innings. She gave up a pair of runs on six hits while striking out six and walking three.
CCSU's Pam Shifrin had only two hits on the day, though each was a home run. She hit a solo shot in the first game and added a two-run blast in the second and finished with four total RBI for the doubleheader. Alison Rossi also went 5-for-8 on the day with a homer and four RBI.
In the first game, CCSU scored four runs in the fourth inning and added four more in the sixth. The Blue Devils also got some help from the Hartford defense, which committed five errors in the game.
Two of Hartford's runs in the contest came off the bat of sophomore Jackie Simonetty, who plated a run in the fourth with a sacrifice fly and doubled in the sixth to drive in Rochette following a leadoff triple. Freshman Rachel Clonick added the final run with a solo homer to lead off the seventh, her fourth of the season.
The Blue Devils got off to a quicker start in the second game, pushing across three runs in the first inning. Karen Costes led off with a triple and then scored on a single by Alison Rossi, and Shifrin followed with a towering shot over the center field fence.
After CCSU added another run in the fourth, Hartford finally got on the board in the bottom of the frame on Thompson's record-breaking homer. She blasted the ball over the center field fence for her team-leading fifth round tripper of the season.
The Blue Devils added three more runs in the fifth and another in the sixth. Hartford's final run came on a solo homer by freshman Amanda Dilworth in the fifth, the first of her collegiate career.
Senior Brie Hout and freshman Gina Massaro took the losses for the Hawks. Hout (1-2 overall) gave up nine runs (two earned) on 10 hits while striking out and walking five. Massaro yielded eight runs (seven earned) on 10 hits while striking out five and walking two.
Hartford will close out the regular season with a three-game weekend series at UMBC. The Hawks need just one win to clinch a spot in the upcoming America East Championship on May 10-12. Hartford and UMBC will play a doubleheader on Saturday, May 5 at 1 p.m. and a single game on Sunday, May 6 at noon.
