MANSFIELD, Conn - Junior
Lynsie Miracle took off from third base and scored on a wild pitch for a walk-off, 2-1, win to push No. 3 University of Massachusetts Dartmouth softball team past No. 6 Plymouth State to advance to day two in the Little East Conference (LEC) Tournament at Eastern Connecticut.
Sophomore
Kaitlyn Shirshac had another great performance in the circle for the Corsairs (31-8-1). She threw a complete-game with five strikeouts and limited the Panthers (12-22) to six hits. On the other side, sophomore Nicole Lebrun allowed only two earned on six hits with eight strikeouts and walked four.
Miracle led UMass Dartmouth offensively with a 2-for-3 day at the plate with both runs scored.
Plymouth State struck first in the second. A two-out base hit off the bat of senior Madison Harris scored sophomore Vanessa Bryan, who hit a single earlier in the inning.
The Corsairs knotted the score at one in the third. Miracle laced a one-out single to right field and stole second. 5th-year senior
Leah Major then knocked home Miracle with a base hit up the middle to make it a 1-1 game.
Shirshac and Lebrun battled through the next three innings to keep the score tied heading to the seventh. Shirshac worked a 1-2-3 top half to set up the offense in the home half.
With one out, Miracle and freshman
Larissa Piessens each singled, and sophomore
Dyonna Rodas walked with two gone. Lebrun then fired an 0-1 pitch high and outside that sailed to the backstop, and Miracle slid headfirst to beat the tag for the walk-off win.
UMass Dartmouth will be the road team against No. 2 Southern Maine at 3:30 p.m. on Thursday at Clyde Washburne Field. The Corsairs and Huskies split the regular-season series.
