NORTON, Mass. – Sophomore starting pitcher Amber Arcand (Millville, Mass.) tossed a five-hit shutout to lead the Wheaton College (Mass.) softball team over visiting Emerson College, 3-0, this afternoon to complete a doubleheader sweep in New England Women's & Men's Athletic Conference play at Clark Softball Field on the Wheaton campus in Norton, Mass.
The Lyons have won four straight – all in a span of 24 hours – to finish the regular season with a 22-15 record, including 15-5 for the best conference mark since they finished the 2015 campaign at 17-1. The Lions close out their season at 15-20 and 5-15.
Wheaton secures the number two seed in the upcoming NEWMAC Championship Tournament for its highest regular-season finish since 2015 when the Lyons finished first.
The number six seed Worcester Polytechnic Institute will host seventh-seeded United States Coast Guard Academy on Monday, May 6. The winner of that game advances to play third-seeded Massachusetts Institute of Technology on Wheaton's Clark Softball Field in Norton on Wednesday, May 8 at 2:30 p.m. The Lyons will play the winner of that contest on the same day at 4:30 p.m.
Wheaton scored two runs in the second and added an insurance run in the third for all the offense it would need in the game.
Arcand struck out three and did not allow a walk in seven complete innings to record her second shutout of the season and fourth of her career for the Lyons, while improving to 4-6 on the year. First year first base Peyton Blakenheim-Brown (Rio Linda, Calif.) led Wheaton's bats, going 2-3 with a run batted in and a run scored, while senior left fielder Allison Weston (West Islip, N.Y.) was 1-3 with an RBI to give her five runs batted in for the day after knocking in four in the opening game of the twinbill. Junior right fielder Grace DiBacco (Selkirk, N.Y.) also contributed with a double and a walk in two at-bats.
Junior center fielder Sam Zannotti (Dudley, Mass.) led Emerson's offense with a triple in three at-bats. First year starting pitcher Caleigh Sheehan (Bolton, Conn.) took the loss to drop to 8-7 after giving up three runs on five hits and five walks to go with a strikeout in six complete innings.
The first two batters of the second both reached and scored to give the Lyons a 2-0 lead after two innings. Blankenheim-Brown reached on an infield single and senior shortstop Lindsey Oliveira (Westport, Mass.) drew a walk to open the frame. Both runners advanced into scoring position on a wild pitch, before Blankenheim-Brown scored on a ground out to put Wheaton on the board. Weston laced a single up the middle to drive in Oliveira with the second run for the Lyons.
Wheaton tacked on another run in the third to make it 3-0. The first three hitters in the inning all reached, resulting in the run. First year second base Ella Molinari (Grafton, Mass.) worked a lead-off walk and senior third base Bryanna Agan (Averill Park, N.Y.) followed with an infield single. Blankenheim-Brown delivered an RBI single up the middle to plate Molinari and give the home team a three-run margin.
Arcand was cruising after setting down 11 straight batters for the Lyons, but Emerson put back-to-back singles together with two outs in the fifth, looking to break into the scoring column. Junior Steph Trendell (Canton, Mass.) and sophomore Kit Zenga (Los Angeles, Calif.) each singled to left field, but Arcand got out of the jam with a ground out.
The Lions looked to get on the board again in the sixth after Zannotti belted a triple down the right field line to open the sixth inning. Arcand retired the next three batters to strand Zannotti and keep the shutout intact.
