UMaine eliminated by Retrievers UMBC stays alive in America East tournament; Bears finish at 35-19

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ORONO – The University of Maine softball team set team records for wins this year, won all seven of its America East series, and earned the regular-season championship and the right to host the postseason tournament at Kessock Field.

But all of those accomplishments couldn’t help the Black Bears in the playoffs.

Maine fell to the University of Maryland Baltimore County 5-1 Friday afternoon, knocking the Bears out of the double-elimination tournament and ending their season.

UMBC moved on to face Boston University in an elimination game which was suspended in the fourth inning Friday due to darkness. The game, which is tied 1-1, will resume at 10:30 this morning.

Albany beat BU 2-1 in Friday’s first game and will face the UMBC-BU winner in the title game at noon.

For the Black Bears, who wrap up with a 35-19 record – the most wins ever for the program – elimination was a disappointing end to an otherwise successful season.

“It doesn’t feel that great right now, to be honest,” said Maine senior Erin Provost, who hit a solo home run in the third. “I would have rather come in fourth and taken the tournament. This is what [the team plays] for, the postseason. … I guess we just peaked a little too soon.”

The Bears stranded 12 baserunners in the two games, including eight Friday, and Maine’s top-ranked defense tallied six errors. Both games were delayed by rain, which added to the Bears’ frustrations.

“Things just really didn’t go our way the past two days,” Maine coach Stacey Sullivan said. “We just really couldn’t get momentum going in our favor. We had some pieces there, but we had a hard time scoring runs. When you do that, it’s hard to gain a solid momentum in a game.”

The Bears had plenty of chances, both before and after a nearly two-hour rain delay Friday. Maine loaded the bases in the fifth inning after a one-out walk, a single and a two-out hit-by-pitch. That brought senior Dana Grimm to the plate, but she popped out.

“I was just looking to get a base hit up the middle,” Grimm said. “That’s all I wanted. I think I was a little overanxious but sometimes the cards don’t fall your way.”

UMBC coach Joe French was pleased with starter Krista Kearns’ timely pitching, especially in the sixth.

“She hit a couple of big pitches when she had to,” he said. “She grinded it out.”

The Black Bears had lead runners aboard in the first three innings but failed to plate any of them. In the third inning, Tara Vilardo singled but was picked off first base before Provost homered to left-center.

Brittany Cheney, Maine’s top hitter, went 0-for-6 in the two games. She grounded out four times Friday, twice swinging at the first pitch.

“I think maybe we were pressing a little too much,” Provost said. “[Kearns] was the same girl [who pitched in Maine’s 5-0 win May 5]. She threw the same stuff. Maybe she stayed outside a little more on us, but that was our trouble spot this year.”

Provost’s homer tied the game but UMBC’s power was too much for Maine. Dana Shepherd hit a solo home run for a 2-1 Retriever lead, followed by Melanie Denischuk’s solo shot in the fifth. UMBC added two runs in the sixth.

Maine starter Jenna Balent allowed three hits. She struck out seven and walked three.

RETRIEVERS 5, BLACK BEARS 1

Maine (35-19) UMBC (46-19)

Player AB R H BI Player AB R H BI

Provost, rf 4 1 3 1 Shirk, lf 4 0 0

Waters, 2b 4 0 0 0 Ward, 3b 3 0 0

Cheney, ss 4 0 0 0 Denischuk, 1b 3 1 1

McKinney, lf 2 0 0 0 Shepherd, ss 3 1 1

Kuhl, dh 3 0 2 0 Shore, c 3 0 0

Joseph, pr 0 0 0 0 Griffith, rf-dh 2 0 0

Ramos, pr-dh 0 0 0 0 Olivieri, dh 0 1 0

Hawkins, 1b 3 0 0 0 Underwood, 2b 2 2 0

Foltz, c 1 0 0 0 O’Rourke, dh-rf 1 0 1

Belmonte, pr 0 0 0 0 O’Hara, cf 3 0 1

Soule, c 0 0 0 0

Grimm, cf 2 0 0 0

Vilardo, 3b 3 0 1 0

Totals 26 1 6 1 Totals 24 5 6 4

Maine 001 000 0 – 1

UMBC 011 012 x – 5

E-Cheney, Balent; Underwood; LOB-Maine 8, UMBC 5; HR-Provost (5); Denischuk (23), Shepherd (8); DP-Waters-Cheney

Maine IP H R ER BB SO

Balent (L,14-12) 5 3 3 2 3 7

Bennis 1 3 2 1 0 0

UMBC IP H R ER BB SO

Kearns (W,13-8) 7 6 1 1 3 2

HBP-Foltz by Kearns; O’Rourke by Balent; WP-Bennis 2, Balent; PB-Shore; T-4:45; ATT-272

In Friday’s first game, Meagan Butsch hit a solo home run with two outs in the top of the seventh inning to break a 1-1 tie and lift the Great Danes into the AE title game.

Casey Halloran tossed a two-hitter, striking out nine and walking one.

BU’s Tyler Benson scored on a Brandi Shields sacrifice fly.

Albany (35-10-1) 000 100 1 – 2 5 0

Boston U. (27-28) 000 100 0 – 1 2 0

Halloran and Meacham; Hardy and Leath