UMBC

Head coach Joe French received his 250th career win as the Retriever softball team completed a doubleheader sweep of the Monmouth Hawks, 6-5 and 6-0, this afternoon at West Long Branch, NJ. With the wins, UMBC clinched an NEC tournament berth and improved to 37-17 overall and 17-3 in the Northeast Conference, while the Hawks fell to 18-21 overall and 12-10 in the NEC.In the first game, the Retrievers came from behind to upset host Monmouth, 6-5. Down 3-1 after four innings, junior Abbie Kahn got things started with a two-out single to third base. Senior Deanna Vecchio followed with a triple to send Kahn home, while junior Lisa Boone and freshman Kristie Pickeral each hit singles to put UMBC up 4-3. The Retrievers scored another two runs in the seventh, and the Hawks tried to rally in the final inning, scoring two runs on three hits, but came up short as UMBC coach Joe French notched his 250th career victory. In the nightcap, senior pitcher Linsi Moy pitched a one-hitter as UMBC defeated Monmouth, 6-0. In this game, Pickeral went 2-4 with two RBI's, while sophomore Lisa Gallignani went 1-1 with 3 RBI's to lead the Retriever offense. The Hawks' only hit came when Elissa Connell hit a one-out single in the seventh inning.UMBC will host Drexel on Thursday, April 25, before finishing the regular season at Long Island on Friday, April 26.