Box Score 1 | Box Score 2
BOSTON, Mass. – Sophomore righty Jordan Bennett (Plainville) pitched into the sixth inning to record her first career win in her first career start in the second game and All-Region sophomore righty Elizabeth Mitchell (Coventry) had a win and a save in a Little East Conference doubleheader for the second time this year when the Eastern Connecticut State University softball team swept the University of Massachusetts Boston, 3-1, 4-1 Saturday afternoon on Senior Day at the UMB Softball Field.
 
By winning twice, Eastern (17-11, 7-3 LEC) remains a game behind LEC leader VTSU Castleton (16-7, 8-2 LEC), which swept visiting Rhode Island College Saturday. Castleton swept Eastern a week ago on its home field, 3-0, 3-1.
 
The sweep ends two two-game losing streaks for Eastern at the hands of UMass Boston (16-8, 3-5 LEC): The first came two years ago, when the Warriors were beaten on UMB's home field twice after 24 consecutive victories; the second came last year when the fourth-seeded fourth Beacons defeated top-seeded and host Eastern in the LEC tournament en route to the title.
 
Making her second appearance of the season and seventh in her two-year career, Bennett (1-0) allowed only two hits and two walks and took a 4-0 shutout into the sixth inning. In the sixth, Mitchell (12-3) took over after freshman shortstop Liv Wentworth tripled in UMass Boston's (16-8, 3-5 LEC) first (and only run) with one out. Mitchell walked two to load the bases but got a fly ball to junior Reagan Lalor (Danbury) in right to strand the tying runs.
 
In the seventh, Mitchell walked one but did not allow a hit, ending the game on a comebacker.
 
Eastern scored the only runs it would need in the top of the first inning when both junior shortstop Kaley Laird (Bristol) and Mitchell raced home on senior catcher Abby Thompson's (Westborough, MA) double play ground ball to second.
 
Eastern added its third run in the fourth when junior leftfielder Grace Jenkins (Groton) reached on an infield single, advanced to second on a passed ball and to third on Lalor's sacrifice bunt and came home on another passed ball. The Warriors tacked on one final run in the sixth on Lalor's first home run of the year, second of her career.
 
In the opener, Mitchell went the distance for the 13^th time in 14 starts, striking out six and walking one. The Beacons took their only lead of the day on junior first baseman Kayley Krockta's two-out solo home run in the fourth but Eastern countered with the tying and go-ahead runs in the fifth when Jenkins socked her third home run of the season on an 0-2 pitch, plating Thompson, who singled to open the inning. First-year pitcher Leah Chatfield (Naugatuck) drove in her first career run in the seventh with a two-out pinch single that scored Thompson to make it 3-1.
 
Thompson reached three times in the second game with two hits and a walk and scored two runs.
 
In two games, Mitchell allowed only one (earned) run in 8 2/3 innings to lower her season ERA to 1.69 in 99 2/3 innings. Mitchell's ERA is second in the LEC only to UMB first-game loser Lauryn Meade, a junior. Meade allowed three earned runs on six hits in the opener, fanning seven and walking one in a complete game.  Senior Lexus McIntosh also went the distance for the Beacons in Game 2, allowing seven hits and three earned runs with three strikeouts and two walks.
 
The Warriors have three LEC doubleheaders remaining prior to the LEC tournament May 6-9 at the site of the No. 1 seed.
 
Eastern hosts Rhode Island College Tuesday at 3:30 p.m. in an LEC doubleheader.