Complete Game Notes (.pdf)

PLAYOFF PUSH
The Southern Connecticut State University softball team will wrap up its home schedule with a Northeast-10 Conference doubleheader against Stonehill on Tuesday, April 22. The Owls then hit the road for doubleheaders at conference opponents American International on Thursday and Saint Anselm on Saturday. With eight regular season games remaining, the Owls are currently tied for fourth place in the Northeast-10 Conference with a record of 19-22 overall and 12-8 in conference play.

April 17: Merrimack (W, 2-0 • L, 2-1)
The Owls kicked off their week with a host of strong pitching performances en route to a split with Merrimack. Senior Jessica Dempsey hurled six shutout innings in game one to earn the win, with junior Amanda Pindar recording the last three outs to pick up the save. Junior Brittany Gandley connected for her sixth home run of the season, a solo shot in the seventh inning of game two.

April 19: Bentley (W, 5-1 • W, 5-4 (10 innings))
A quartet of hurlers allowed a total of seven hits over the course of a doubleheader to drive the Southern Connecticut State University softball team to a sweep the visiting Bentley College Falcons in a Northeast-10 Conference twin bill at Pelz Field on Saturday afternoon. Senior Jessica Dempsey and junior Amanda Pindar allowed just one hit apiece in a 5-1 victory in game one. The Owls clawed to a scrappy, 10-inning 5-4 win in game two, as the pitching trio of sophomore Nicole Marcelynas, sophomore Megan Caporossi and Pindar did not allow an earned run.

April 20: Franklin Pierce (W, 2-1 • W, 6-5 (11 innings))
Junior Monica Savarese drove in the game-winning run in game one and the game-tying runs in game two of a doubleheader to lead the Owls to a sweep of Northeast-10 Conference foe Franklin Pierce on Sunday afternoon from Pelz Field in New Haven, Conn. The Owls took game one by a score of 2-1, backed by a combined three-hitter from senior Jessica Dempsey and junior Amanda Pindar. Sophomore Khristle Lee knocked in the game-winning run in the 11th inning of the nightcap to give the Owls a 5-4 win and secure the two-game sweep.

STONEHILL COLLEGE SKYHAWKS
April 22 • New Haven, Conn. (Pelz Field)
Stonehill is currently 19-15 overall and 11-9 in Northeast-10 Conference contests. Courtney Young leads the Skyhawks' offense with a .391 batting average and 28 runs batted in. Katie Mottau has been the most consistent pitcher on the staff with a 6-6 record, a 3.91 earned run average and 41 strikeouts.

AMERICAN INTERNATIONAL COLLEGE YELLOW JACKETS
April 24 • Springfield, Mass. (Groff Field)
Currently sporting a record of 16-21 overall and 7-15 in the conference, the Yellow Jackets from American International are led by Tara Demontier, who is hitting .445 with seven home runs and 25 runs batted in. Sara Puglisi, the ace of the American International rotation, is 7-5 with a 3.11 earned run average.

SAINT ANSELM COLLEGE HAWKS
April 26 • Manchester, N.H. (South Athletic Field)
Saint Anselm will travel to Bryant and then host Southern New Hampshire in a pair of conference doubleheaders before wrapping up their regular season against Southern Connecticut. Entering their final six regular season contests, the Hawks are tied for fourth in the conference with the Owls at 12-8. Overall, Saint Anselm has a record of 18-12.

ROLLING ALONG
After sweeping Bentley and Franklin Pierce this weekend, the Owls have now won 10 of their last 12 games. Sophomore Megan Caporossi and juniors Monica Savarese and Amanda St. George are all batting over .400 in that stretch. Over the current run, the pitching staff has posted an earned run average of 1.97.

WORKING OVERTIME
On Saturday, April 19, the Owls won a 10-inning thriller over Bentley by a score of 5-4. The next day, the squad was in extra innings again; this time knocking off Franklin Pierce in the 11th frame by a 6-5 mark.

DOING IT ALL
Sophomore Megan Caporossi is leading the Owls with 27 runs batted in and a conference-high eight home runs. The Northford, Conn. native is hitting a team-best .393 and also leads the squad in hits, slugging percentage, on-base percentage, runs scored, triples and total bases. Caporossi has served as both a third baseman and a designated hitter, while also contributing as a relief pitcher with a win and nine strikeouts in 17.2 innings of work.

OVER .300
Juniors Christina Wolf and Amanda St. George join Caporossi as Owls' hitters over .300 this season. Wolf is hitting .309 with one home run and 17 RBI. St. George used a 3-for-6 performance in Sunday's doubleheader sweep of Franklin Pierce to bump her average up to .303.

BACK TO FORM
Senior hurler Jessica Dempsey has not surrendered an earned run in her last 20.2 innings of work. In this stretch, which spans her last six starts, Dempsey has posted a 2-0 record and struck out 14 batters while surrendering only 10 hits. The Owls as a team are 6-0 in Dempsey's starts during this streak.

PELZ POWER
The Owls are currently 7-1 on a season-long 10 game homestand. On the season, the Owls are 14-5 in games played at Pelz Field.

PIN-POINT PERFORMANCES
Since starting the season with a 3-8 record, junior Amanda Pindar has posted a 5-0 record and recorded a save while sporting an earned run average of 1.78 in her last eight appearances. On the year, Pindar is now the Owls' leader in wins at 8-8 with a 5.14 ERA.

THEIR FIRST ROUND TRIPS
Three Owls have connected on their first career home runs in the 2008 campaign. Sophomore Melissa Corwin, playing only her second career game at Southern Connecticut, drilled a walk-off homer to complete the Owls' sweep of Dominican on March 11. Freshman Robin Priest smacked her first career home run in the fourth inning of the Owls' 7-5 extra inning loss to Adelphi on March 22. Priest's solo shot also marked her first career RBI. Junior Christina Wolf swatted the first big fly of her career in the nightcap of the squad's March 30 doubleheader against Dowling.

HONOR AMONGST THIEVES
Sophomore Julianne Flood leads the Owls on the basepaths with 12 stolen bags in 15 attempts this season. At a perfect 11-for-11, sophomore Megan Caporossi leads the Northeast-10 Conference among players who have not been caught stealing.

MOVING THE RUNNERS
Freshman Robin Priest and sophomores Khristle Lee and Julianne Flood lead the Owls with six sacrifice bunts each this season. All three players have also driven in a run via a sacrifice fly.

IN THE NORTHEAST-10 PRESEASON COACHES' POLL
The Owls have been selected to finish third in the Northeast-10 Conference Preseason Coaches' Poll. They received three first place votes. Le Moyne, the 2007 regular season champion, was chosen to repeat in 2008, receiving with seven first place votes and 215 total points. Bryant claimed the second slot with 194 points, including four first place votes. Massachusetts-Lowell, the 2007 conference tournament champion, received the final first place vote and claimed the sixth spot with 159 total points.

IN THE YEAR 2007
The Owls finished the 2007 season with a record of 32-17. They wrapped up their Northeast-10 Conference schedule in the third spot with a 21-7 record in conference play. In their last game of the 2007 campaign, senior Jessica Dempsey took a hard-luck 1-0 loss against Dowling in the NCAA Northeast Regional playoffs.

THE CAPTAINS
A quartet of players will serve as team captains for the 2008 season. Senior Jessica Dempsey and juniors Brittany Gandley, Kierstin Pry and Monica Savarese will lead the Owls on the field.

THE COACH
Head Coach Lisa Barbaro returns for her fourth year in the dugout. In her Southern Connecticut career to date, Barbaro has posted a record of 97-78-5, including a 61-40-3 mark in Northeast-10 Conference games.

ON DECK
Massachusetts-Lowell will host the Owls in the regular season finale for both squads. The first pitch of game one is scheduled for 3 p.m. from River View Field in Lowell, Mass.