Kissimmee, Fla. … The College of New Jersey softball team plated nine unanswered runs against Lesley University to register a split in its games on Sunday in Kissimmee, Fla.
 
The Lions (3-3) suffered a 4-3 setback in 10 innings against Springfield College in the early game, but bounced back to defeat Lesley, 9-4 in the second game. Freshman Kristen Barrera (Bayonne, NJ/Bayonne) came on in relief to capture her first collegiate victory, tossing four scoreless innings.
 
Game 1: Springfield 4  TCNJ 3 (10 innings)
 
The Lions held one-run leads on three occasions, but the Pride wrestled away a win in their season opener with a two-run double to left-center in the bottom of the 10^th inning.
 
TCNJ went the first nine innings without the luxury of a hit and finished with just two in the game. The Lions, however, were able to manufacture runs as junior Sam Platt (Cedar Grove, NJ/Mount St. Dominic Academy) kept the game in check and frustrated the Springfield offense.
 
TCNJ pushed a run across in the second inning to take an early lead. Sophomore Jess Santelli (Hillsborough, NJ/Hillsborough) drew a walk and moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by Gaby Bennett (Hamilton, NJ/Steinert). Madison Levine (Oakland, NJ/Indian Hills) was hit by a pitch and Jenna Schwartz (Branchburg, NJ/Somerville) was issued a base on balls. Freshman Danielle Carey (Maple Shade, NJ/Maple Shade) garnered her fifth RBI in two days when she took one for the team, allowing Bennett to cross home plate.
 
Springfield tied the game in the bottom of the fifth. A double to left by Allie Wheeler put her in scoring position with one out. After Platt struck out Meghan Sastram swinging, Kayla Padroff dropped in a bloop-single to short left to plate Wheeler and even the score.
 
The contest moved into extra innings and the Pride threatened with runners on second and third with nobody. A batter's interference call took care of the first out and Megan Mayernik (Columbus, NJ/Northern Burlington) calmly ate up the next two. She fielded and fired home to the force out number two, and charged a slow roller and threw to first to end the inning.
 
In the ninth, a fielder's choice by Schwartz plated Bennett with the go-ahead run, but Springfield responded with a sacrifice fly off the bat of Wheeler.
 
Senior Colleen Phelan (Tinton Falls, NJ/Monmouth Regional) legged out a bunt single to put runners at first and third in the 10^th. With one out, Mayernik shot a base hit to right to score Annalilse Suitovsky (Warren Twp., NJ/Watchung Hills) from third and TCNJ edged ahead, 3-2.
 
The Pride put runners at second and third with nobody out in the 10^th. Platt induced a ground ball out, but Kristen Drobiak doubled to left to score two and close out the game.
 
Platt went nine and one-third innings, struck out four, and surrendered two earned runs. Talia Loda went all 10 innings for the Pride and limited the Lions to just two hits.
 
The victory for Springfield was the first in the coaching career for new Head Coach Kate Bowen.
 
Game 2: TCNJ 9  Lesley University  4
 
Trailing 4-0 early in the game, the Lions tallied nine unanswered runs to turn back the Lynx, 9-4. Sophomore Arielle Couso (Hillsborough, NJ/Hillsborough) was a perfect 3-for-3 at the plate and drove in two runs. Rookie Helena Coppola (Lincroft, NJ/St. John Vianney) had the big blow in the game, stroking a bases-loaded, ground rule double in a six-run fourth inning.
 
Lesley jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the second with one swing of the bat. Courtney Goggin lifted a grand slam home run to center field in the second inning to put the Lynx in command.
 
A double to left-center by junior Danielle Carey (Maple Shade, NJ/Maple Shade) injected some life to the Lions' bench and two batters later Couso knocked her in to cut the deficit to 4-1.
 
Three straight singles to open the fourth loaded the bases with nobody out. Coppola came up to pinch hit and capitalized on her opportunity. She drilled a pitch to left that bounced over the fence to draw TCNJ within one. Couso raced home on a wild pitch to tie the game, and later in the inning, Jess McGuire roped a single to give the Lions their first lead. Santelli followed with a triple to right-center to chase McGuire and Carey drove in her sixth run of the weekend to cap the offensive outburst.
 
A run-scoring single by Couso in the fifth made it 8-4 and TCNJ tacked on one more in the sixth.
 
Barrera scattered four hits over four innings, struck out one, and did not issue a walk. The Lions played solid defense behind her, committing just one error in the game.
 
TCNJ will enjoy a day off tomorrow before getting back to action on Tuesday with games against University of Dubuque at 1:30 p.m. and Case Western Reserve University at 3:45 p.m.