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Box Score 2 MANSFIELD, Conn. – Junior outfielder Stephanie Johnson (Plantsville) and senior first baseman Kelly Paterson (Southington) each drove in three runs and senior third baseman Arielle Cooper (Mystic) hit her ninth home run of the season as the Eastern Connecticut State University softball team stretched its winning streak to ten with 9-3, 10-0 Little East Conference victories over the University of Southern Maine Saturday afternoon at the Eastern Softball Field. The second game was stopped after Southern Maine batted in the top of the fifth due to the eight-run rule.
Senior righty Christine Akcer (Milford) and sophomore righty Shannon Martin (Wethersfield) combined on a six-hitter in the first game and the Warriors scored six unearned runs on two Southern Maine (1-17, 0-4 LEC) errors to wipe out the Huskies' early 3-0 advantage. Akcer improved to 3-0.
Trailing 3-1, Eastern (13-5, 4-0 LEC) scored three unearned in the second after there were two out and none on, two coming in when a fly ball was dropped in the outfield. Leading 4-3, the Warriors pulled away with five runs in the fifth (three of them unearned) on a a two-run double by No. 9 hitter Johnson and a two-run single by freshman pinch hitter Alyssa Dumphy (Southington).
Cooper, the program's all-time home run leader, belted her 33rd career homer leading off the first inning of the opener after the Huskies had scored three times in the top of the first on two hits, a walk and two Eastern errors. Lindsay Somerset plated two with a two-out single down the left field line after Kristen Duross had made it 1-0 with a run-scoring single.
The Warriors scored all of their runs in the second game on just six hits, as they were aided by eight walks and three Southern Maine errors. In a six-run fourth which sealed the win, Paterson had a two-out, bases-clearing double down the left field line.
Sophomore righty Erin Miller (Waterford) and freshman righty Emily Komornik (Shelton) combined on the second-game shutout, the third for Eastern this year and second in three games. Miller (4-1) allowed three hits over the first four innings.
Cooper, batting .621 this season, reached base seven times in the doubleheader on her home run and six walks, and scored five runs. She was walked four times in the nightcap, one shy of the Eastern record.
Eastern, which posted the first perfect regular season (14-0) in LEC softball history last season, has won 20 consecutive regular-season conference games dating back to 2011 and is 44-2 in its last 46 regular-season conference games.
The victories give 12th-year head coach Diana Pepin 299 career victories (against 161 losses and a tie). Pepin took over as the program's winningest coach a year ago.
Sunday, Eastern faces 2012 New England regional champion and No.6-ranked Tufts University at 1 p.m. and Wellesley College at 3 p.m. at Wellesley, MA.
