LOUDONVILLE, NY – Home sweet home continued to ring true for Siena Softball as it continued an eight-game home stand at Siena Softball Field on Sunday afternoon. The Saints (27-11, 8-2) carried out a doubleheader sweep of MAAC foe Quinnipiac (14-17, 3-7) with 5-4 and 4-2 victories, while improving to 10-2 in Loudonville this season and setting a single-season program record in the process.


Siena 5, Quinnipiac 4
Competing against the Bobcats in Loudonville for the first time since 2018, the Saints got on the board immediately to begin the game, with graduate student Ava Fitzmaurice sending in junior Isabella Pardo on an RBI single, Vargas scoring on a fielding error, and Fitzmaurice reaching home on a sacrifice fly from freshman Emma Petersen. The Saints also made history during the frame, when Fitzmaurice stole Siena's 75^th base of the season to set the single-season team record, surpassing the previous mark of 74 set in 1979.

With help from the second complete outing in as many days from redshirt freshman Alissa Eimont, Siena kept the Bobcats off the scoreboard through the middle innings and used an RBI double to right from junior Mikala Fletcher to score senior Shannon Bonewit and extend the lead in the bottom of the fourth.

After having a bye on Saturday while Siena endured a seven-hour home doubleheader, Quinnipiac dialed up a late comeback attempt, beginning with an RBI double in the bottom of the sixth. The Saints brought QU to their final strike in the seventh, but an RBI fielder's choice and a 2 RBI double tied the game at four to make the bottom of the seventh necessary. Quinnipiac nearly had the lead with the bases loaded, but Siena made a play at the plate which accounted for what ended up being the deciding out of the game.

Following a leadoff single from sophomore McKenzie Swinson to begin the bottom of the seventh, the new single-season program stolen base leader swiped second and advanced to third two batters later on a ground out. Swinson ended the game on a pinch-hit RBI infield single off the bat of redshirt-junior Diana Parker to save the Saints from what would have been a series-opening extra inning affair for the second straight day.

Siena held an 8-7 hits advantage, with Fitzmaurice going 2-3 to lead things offensively. Eimont improved to 8-3 on the year with four strikeouts in the circle, while Quinnipiac's Sydney Horan (8-10) took the complete game loss with an equal amount of K's.

Siena 4, Quinnipiac 2

The Bobcats attempted to set the table for another late comeback attempt in the nightcap, but rolling defense helped the Saints stay grounded through the middle innings of play. Siena again struck first in the bottom of the second, with Petersen and senior Jocelyn Ulrich scoring on an RBI single from sophomore Ashley Giampolo, and Parker sending Giampolo in on a sacrifice fly. An RBI double to left center from Bonewit put the Saints up 4-0 after three innings, with Fitzmaurice coming in to score.

With the game featuring only a single baserunner in the fourth and fifth innings, Quinnipiac found offense in the sixth with a two-out RBI single to get on the board. The Bobcats once again found themselves down to their final strike multiple times, but managed an RBI double in the seventh before Siena secured its eighth doubleheader sweep of the season.

Both teams recorded six hits in the affair, with Petersen going 2-3 to lead things offensively. Fitzmaurice moved to 10-4 in the circle with three strikeouts and only one walk in the complete game victory, while Quinnipiac's Jaclyn Gonzalez (6-7) took the complete game loss with one strikeout.

Siena will look to end its season-long eight-game home stand strong on Tuesday, April 18 when it hosts Colgate for a non-conference doubleheader at 2 & 4 PM.