Jayme Bilafer smacks RBI double in game two for the Ravens

BRIARCLIFF, N.Y. (April 15, 2012) -- The Franklin Pierce University softball team's struggles continued on Sunday as the Ravens were swept in a doubleheader at Pace in Briarcliff, N.Y. The Ravens dropped both games in five innings, including an 8-0 setback in game one and a 10-2 defeat in game two. Franklin Pierce dipped to 9-24 overall and 7-17 in the Northeast-10, while the Setters improved to 26-14 and 13-11 in league play.

Pace set the tone for the day with two runs in the first inning of game one, but then exploded for five more in the fifth to seal the first win. Natalie Gellos went 2-for-2 with a double and a home run, while driving in two runs and scoring a pair. Her homer was a two-run shot in the first, also scoring Jeane Drury on the play, who singled earlier in the frame.

Samantha Garcia went 2-for-3, including smacking a grand slam to highlight the five-run fifth inning. Lauren Bell went 2-for-2 with a double and a run scored.

Chelsea Shea earned the win in the pitching circle for Pace as she improved to 5-4 on the season after going 4.0 innings, yielding just one hit with six strikeouts.

For the third-straight game, Franklin Pierce managed just three hits as junior Jessica Furtado (Taunton, Mass.), senior Rachel Baxter (Cumberland, R.I.) and freshman Alyssa Dolson (Northbridge, Mass.) each stroked a single.

Rachel Allen (Hull, Mass.) suffered the loss in the circle for Franklin Pierce as she fell to 3-11 after allowing seven runs on seven hits over 2.2 innings of work.

Franklin Piece swung the bats better in the second game as Furtado, freshman Alicia Dean (Danvers, Mass.) and senior Jayme Bilafer (Concord, Mass.) each collected a pair of hits, including a double apiece for Furtado and Bilafer. 

After a second-inning homer by Hana Wright staked Pace to a 1-0 lead, the Ravens countered with a pair of runs in the third to go up by a run. Dean singled to lead off the inning and came around to score two batters later as Bilafer smoked a double to center field. Furtado was next up at the dish and she too sent a double to center, plating Bilafer for the go-ahead run.

Pace, though, responded in the bottom of the third with a two-run homer by Drury to retake the lead at 3-2. The Setters then put the game out of reach with six tallies in the fourth to go up 9-2. The highlights of the fourth inning for Pace were a three-run double from Sabrina Gonzalez and Drury following with another two-run shot. The Setters tacked on a run in the fifth to set the eight-run rule and cap the win.

Shea came on in relief in game two and pitched the final two innings to earn the win and run her record to 6-4. She yielded just two hits in her second appearance of the day. Kaitlyn Johnson (New Boston, N.H.) started for Franklin Pierce and lasted just 3.2 innings, yielding nine runs on nine hits to fall to 4-8 on the year.

Franklin Pierce returns to action Tuesday when the Ravens play host to Southern New Hampshire in a doubleheader in Rindge beginning at 3 p.m.

For more information on Franklin Pierce softball, please visit the team's page at athletics.franklinpierce.edu(.) To follow the program even further, please visit Franklin Pierce Athletics on YouTube (www.youtube.com/FranklinPierceSports), Twitter (www.twitter.com/FPUathletics) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/FranklinPierceRavens).