UMBC

Emily Thompson hit her fifth home run of the season in Game One.

STONY BROOK, N.Y.—The UMBC softball team (32-18, 10-7 AEC) split a doubleheader with league-leading and defending America East champion Stony Brook (31-11, 12-4 AEC) Saturday afternoon at University Field. The Retrievers took the first game by a score of 5-2, but the Seawolves rallied back for a 3-1 victory in the nightcap.

Game 1: UMBC 5, Stony Brook 2

The Retrievers scored all five of their runs in the third inning. Pitcher Amanda Fefel (Baltimore, Md./Catonsville) got the scoring started with an RBI single before red-hot right fielder Emily Thompson (Niagara Falls, N.Y./Niagara Falls) launched a three-run homer over the center field fence. UMBC then tacked on an unearned run to take a 5-0 lead.

The Seawolves got single runs in the fifth and sixth on a bases loaded walk and a sacrifice fly.

Fefel (11-4) allowed two runs on four hits and struck out eight in five innings to pick up the win. Sophomore Stephanie Weigman (Elkridge, Md./Archbishop Spalding) pitched two scoreless innings and struck out four to earn her third save of the season.

Alyssa Struzenberg suffered the loss after giving up five runs (four earned) on five hits in three innings, while Casey Jacobs pitched four hitless innings in relief.

Game 2: Stony Brook 3, UMBC 1

Catcher Amanda Page (Batavia, N.Y./Batavia/Monroe CC) drove in UMBC’s only run of the game with an RBI single in the third, giving the Retrievers a brief 1-0 lead.

But Stony Brook took advantage of three UMBC errors to score three unearned runs in the bottom of the inning.

Weigman (20-13) went the distance in the loss, while Struzenberg (18-5) picked up the victory after allowing one run on five hits and striking out five in 4.1 innings of work. Jacobs pitched 2.2 scoreless innings to earn her fourth save of the season.

Page and third baseman Krista Kearns (Santa Fe Springs, Calif./Santa Fe) paced the Retrievers’ offense with two hits apiece, while Stony Brook second baseman Molly Kestranek and second baseman Vicki Kavitsky combined for five of the Seawolves’ six hits in the game.

The teams meet again for the rubber match Sunday at 12 p.m.