Ewing, NJ…The College of New Jersey softball team opened the home portion of its schedule with a doubleheader sweep of Gwynedd-Mercy College on Wednesday. The Lions won the opening game 11-0 in five innings and then completed the sweep with a 1-0 victory in the second.
The two wins squared TCNJ's record at an even 6-6, while the Griffins slipped to 2-10.
In the opening game, pitcher Ashley Minervini (Cliffside Park, NJ/Cliffside Park) and Alex Sietsma (Glen Rock, NJ/Glen Rock) fired the team's third five-inning no-hitter of the spring. Minervini struck out five in four scoreless innings with Sietsma closing things out in the fifth. With her four scoreless innings, Minervini extended her personal scoreless inning streak to 22.2 innings.
The Lions will return to the road this weekend playing in the Salisbury University Invitational where they will play four games. The tournament starts on Friday with games against Capital University and SUNY Geneseo and then concludes on Saturday as the Lions are schedule to face Plattsburgh State and the host Sea Gulls.
TCNJ 11, Gwynedd-Mercy 0 (5 innings)
Box Score
The Lions gave their pitchers plenty of support as they opened the scoring in the first as junior Ellen Seavers (Ridgewood, NJ/Ridgewood) raced home on a steal attempt and freshman Katelyn Congilose (Toms River, NJ/Monsignor Donovan) drove in the other with a base hit.
After TCNJ scored two more times in the second, the Lions tacked on three more in the third with sophomore Kathy Sikora (Marlton, NJ/Cherokee) getting one of the key hits inning with a run-scoring double. Seavers also drove in a run as the hosts extended their lead to 5-0.
The Lions padded their advantage with two more runs in the third and four in the fourth to cap the scoring.
TCNJ plenty of balance at the plate as five different players picked up two hits apiece. That group included Seavers, junior Danielle Hagel (Egg Harbor City, NJ/Oakcrest), Congilose, Sikora and senior Kelly Armstrong (Jackson, NJ/Jackson Memorial).
TCNJ 1 Gwynedd-Mercy 0
Box Score
Pitching again played a factor in the second game as TCNJ freshman Lauren Fitzsimmons (Bond Brook, NJ/Bridgewater-Raritan) out-dueled Gwynedd-Mercy sophomore Susan Miller (Philadelphia, PA/Archbishop Ryan). Fitzsimmons picked up her first complete-game shutout of her young career scattering three hits with eight strikeouts.
Miller allowed only the one run on five hits with a pair of strikeouts.
TCNJ scored that lone run in the third as Seavers singled and later scored on a passed ball.
