MANSFIELD, Conn. – Three outs away from closing out its home regular season with its fourth home sweep, the Eastern Connecticut State University softball team allowed six runs on five hits in the top of the seventh inning in an 8-5 non-conference loss to Wesleyan University Sunday afternoon at the Eastern Softball Stadium.

In the first game, senior All-America shortstop Alyssa Hancock (Waterford)  belted a game-ending single off the left field fence to drive in junior centerfielder Samantha Bardos (Norwalk) from third with two out in the bottom of the eighth in a 6-5 triumph.  Trailing 5-4, Eastern (13-21) scored twice in the inning, tying the game on Bardo's bunt single which plated senior catcher Taylor Smyth (Meriden) and winning it on Hancock's long drive off the fence.

Eastern junior lefty Summer Cipriani (North Stonington) allowed only seven hits and single runs in the first and fourth and carried a 3-2 lead into the seventh inning of the first game before Wesleyan (20-12)   erupted for six runs on five hits, two errors and a hit batsemen. An infield error with one out and one on opened the door for the game-winning rally.

 Junior centerfielder Jamie Hom's two-run double with the bases loaded sent in the tying and go-ahead runs for the Cardinals in the seventh as five consecutive batters reached after there was one out.

Junior righty Samantha Valentine (Ridge, NY) went the distance in the first game for Eastern, allowing nine hits while walking and fanning one.

Hancock had six hits (including a triple and homer) in the doubleheader to move her to within three of 200 in her career. In what may be her final home at-bat, Hancock tripled in a run and scored in Eastern's two-run seventh in the second game.

Eastern junior catcher Kristyn Ryan (Barkhamsted) had four hits, including a home run.

Eight hitters in the balanced Wesleyan attack had two or more hits, with junior third baseman Rielly Wieners and Hom each driving in three runs with three hits.  Senior second baseman Angelina Massoia reached safely three times with two hits (including a home run) and walk and scored twice in each game.

Eastern visits the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth Tuesday at 3:30 for a Little East Conference doubleheader.