Alyssa Dolson strokes base hit for the Ravens in game two

RINDGE, N.H. (April 17, 2012) -- The Franklin Pierce University softball team was swept in a home doubleheader versus Southern New Hampshire on Tuesday, including dropping game one, 10-0 in six innings, and game two by a 5-0 count. The Ravens fell to 9-26 overall and 7-19 in the Northeast-10, while the Penmen improved to 23-15 and 13-9 in league play.

Game one started off as a nice pitching duel between Franklin Pierce's Rachel Allen (Hull, Mass.) and SNHU's Ali Maloof, as the counterparts combined to keep the game scoreless through the first three innings.

Allen retired SNHU in order in both the second and third innings, while Maloof turned the trick in the first and third frames. Junior catcher Jessica Furtado (Taunton, Mass.) was the only Raven to solve Maloof over the first three innings as she stroked a single to center field in the second.

After being baffled by Allen over the first three innings, SNHU finally solved the situation and went to work in the fourth inning plating two runs, including an RBI single from Jessica Douillette,  to take a 2-0 advantage.

The Penmen went back to work in the fifth inning and pushed across five more runs to take a commanding 7-0 lead. Cara Daley provided the big spark in the inning as she lifted a fastball over the wall in left-center field for a three-run homer. 

SNHU put the eight-run rule into effect in the sixth as it scored three more times, courtesy of a three-run shot from Kate Stanley, to take the 10-run lead. Maloof sealed the win in the bottom of the frame as she retired the Ravens in order to run her record to 11-8. 

Maloof yielded just that one hit to Franklin Pierce in the game. After Furtado's base hit, Maloof retired the final 15 batters she faced to earn the complete-game victory. She struck out six and did not walk a batter.

Allen took the loss to fall to 3-12 as she went 4.1 innings, giving up seven runs (only five earned) on six hits with one strikeout and three walks.

Game two did not fare any better offensively for the Ravens as they were shutout once again. Dolores Mattice turned in another pitching gem for SNHU as she went all seven innings, yielding just three hits with three strikeouts and only one walk.

After giving up three singles and a walk over the first 1.1 innings, Mattice settled down and retired the final 17 batters she faced to earn the win and run her record to 8-7 on the year. The only Ravens to get to Mattice were seniors Jayme Bilafer (Concord, Mass.) and Rachel Baxter (Cumberland, R.I.) and freshman Alyssa Dolson (Northbridge, Mass.), as those three accounted for Franklin Pierce's hits.

The Penmen pushed a pair of runs across in both the first and fourth innings, while tacking on an insurance run in the sixth. Stanley and Kelsea Cheney launched back-to-back solo homers in the first inning to highlight the offensive output for SNHU.

Freshman Kaitlyn Johnson (New Boston, N.H.) took to the circle for the Ravens and was tagged with the loss after going 7.0 innings, allowing five runs (only three earned) on 12 hits, with six strikeouts and just one walk. She fell to 4-9 on the year. 

Franklin Pierce returns to action Saturday when the Ravens play host to Le Moyne in a doubleheader beginning at 2 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).