UMBC

Kaela Mason went 3-for-3 with a pair of RBI on Saturday.

BALTIMORE—Playing for the first time in two weeks, the UMBC softball team (5-1) showed no signs of layoff in taking two games on the first day of the UMBC Retriever Classic Saturday afternoon at UMBC Softball Stadium. Seven of the Retrievers’ 18 hits went for extra bases, as the hosts defeated Morgan State, 10-2, in six innings, then took out Fairleigh Dickinson, 6-5.

UMBC 10, Morgan State 2 (6 innings)

Junior second baseman Lauren Brummell (Hanover, Va./Hanover) led off the game for the Retrievers with a triple and scored on an RBI groundout by junior first baseman Malorie Weller (Round Hill, Va./Loudoun Valley/Kennesaw State) to give UMBC an early 1-0 lead.

But the Retrievers broke the game open an inning later, sending 10 batters to the plate and scoring six runs on six hits for a 7-0 advantage. Senior shortstop Jessica Vetock (Pasadena, Md./Institute of Notre Dame/CCBC-Catonsville) and Brummell each picked up RBI singles, but the big blow came on a three-run homer by senior third baseman Amanda Fefel (Baltimore, Md./Catonsville). It was the 32nd home run of Fefel’s career, leaving her eight shy of Kristie Pickeral’s UMBC record.

Morgan State catcher Kriston Gowan put the Bears on the board for the first time in the third with an RBI single, but the Retrievers extended their lead in the fourth, getting RBIs from sophomore Kaela Mason (Bel Air, Md./Harford Tech) and freshman Ashley Scroggin (Stafford, Va./North Stafford) to make it 9-1.

The Bears struck for an unearned run in the fifth before UMBC ended the game in the sixth when Mason led off with a single and eventually scored the winning run on a passed ball.

Freshman Heather Brown (Pasadena, Md./Northeast) picked up her second win of the season, allowing just one unearned run on three hits while striking out seven in four innings of work. Fefel pitched the final two frames and did not give up a hit while allowing an unearned run. Porsche Boddicker suffered the loss for Morgan State after giving up 10 runs (eight earned) on 12 hits in five innings.

UMBC 6, Fairleigh Dickinson 5

Junior left fielder Lynn Pronobis (Waldorf, Md./McDonough) was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded in the second inning to force in UMBC’s first run of the game, and senior right fielder Emily Thompson (Niagara Falls, N.Y./Niagara Falls) made it 2-0 when she crossed the plate on a wild pitch. Weller led off the third with a double and eventually scored when Scroggin walked with the bases juiced.

UMBC maintained its 3-0 lead until the sixth, when the Knights first cracked the scoreboard on a two-run double by center fielder Kirsten Shreve, but the Retrievers responded with three runs in the bottom of the inning as Mason drove in a run with a double and Brummell plated a pair with her second triple of the day to give the hosts a four-run lead, 6-2.

The insurance runs paid off, as the Knights also scored three times in the top of the seventh. UMBC junior Stephanie Weigman (Elkridge, Md./Archbishop Spalding) struck out the first two batters of the inning before allowing a pair of base runners on an infield single and a walk. She appeared to escape the jam when she induced a fly ball to left field, but the ball fell in to allow both runners to score. Fefel relieved Weigman and gave up a hit to allow the Fairleigh Dickinson’s fifth run, but she struck out the next batter to end the game.

Weigman (3-1) allowed five runs (two earned) and struck out eight in 6.2 innings of work to earn the victory, and Fefel picked up her second save of the season and UMBC-record sixth of her career. Trina Fields suffered the loss for the Knights after giving up three runs (two earned) in 2.2 innings. Kara Boyd allowed three runs over the final 3.1 frames.

Nine different Retrievers had at least one hit on the day, led by Mason, Brummell and Vetock, who all picked up three base knocks. In addition, 10 different Retrievers crossed the plate and seven had RBIs, paced by Brummell and Fefel with three apiece.

In other action at the UMBC Retriever Classic, Brown defeated Morgan State, 9-8, in 11 innings, and also took out Fairleigh Dickinson, 7-5. The Retrievers and Bears will meet Sunday at 11 a.m. in pool play to determine seeds for the championship game at 1 p.m. Morgan State will meet FDU at 9 a.m. and again in the consolation game at 3 p.m.