NEWLONDON, CT -- Pine Manor dug itself an early ditch less than six minutes into its season opener, a 4-1 setback at Mitchell College Wednesday evening.

Sophomore Margaret Roberts (right) scored her first career goal in the loss.

Caley McClendon connected to put the Mariners on the board at 5:43 with her fourth goal of the season. With just over 11 minutes remaining in the first half, Rebecca Tabak beat a leaping Colleen Tencza from the top of the box to extend the margin to 2-0 at halftime.

Pine Manor entered the locker room being outshot 11-1, with Mitchell earning the match's only corner kick.

After holding the Mariners scoreless in the second half inside the 60:00 mark, Mitchell tallied two scores within eight minutes to put the contest out of reach. Marjorie Oliveira and Brittany O'Neil each scored their first goals of 2010, with O'Neil's coming off a steal on a Pine Manor throw-in to open up a 4-0 lead at 71:31.

Roberts' first career goal on her sixth career shot and first of the season was also off a steal lobbing one in over Mariners keeper Kaylee Woodward at the 82:00 mark.

For Pine Manor Tencza tallied nine saves, while junior Alicia Grenier took a team-high two shots in reserve action for the Gators (0-1). On the game, Pine Manor was outshot 23-5, with McClendon's five shots leading all players.

Cory Kinsella's club opens Great Northeast Athletic Conference play on Saturday at Rivier at noon. The Gators return to Chestnut Hill to take on Newbury at 4:00 Monday afternoon at Hedley Field.

CHESTNUT HILL, MA – Pine Manor stormed back from a 3-1 deficit to upset previously undefeated Newbury, 3-2, in Gators head coach Mike Murphy’s first match as a head coach at the Division III level.

             “It was a huge step for the team,” said Murphy.  “I feel great.”

            Pine Manor (1-0) junior Jen Gross (Coral Springs, FL/Coral Glades) led all players with three blocks and 12 kills, hitting .273, while freshman Megan Patch (Bethpage, TN/Red Boiling Springs) posted a match-high 35 set assists in her first college action. Alie Johnston (Winnipeg, MB/River East) chipped in with 11 kills and 10 digs, lifting the Gators down the stretch.

            “They’re fantastic players,” Murphy, a Waltham native, said of Gross and Johnston. “Megan [Patch] as well. To walk in as a freshman and basically be the quarterback of the team, which is what the setter is, that’s a lot of weight on her shoulders.  She was able to get the ball to the more experienced players.”

            Newbury (2-1) narrowly escaped the opening set with a 25-23 victory after a late Gators comeback fell short. A Johnston ace tied the set at 18-18, and a Gross kill retied it at 23-23, forcing first-year Newbury head coach Chris Taylor to use his first timeout. A Pine Manor kill error followed, and the Nighthawks captured game point following a Talia Martinez (Malibu, CA/Malibu) serve.

            “The first set we had the expected struggles as a new team,” Murphy said, “but we had some good play despite that.”

            After falling short in Game 1, the Gators took control early in the following set, sprinting out to a 7-1 lead following five straight points on Johnston serves.

            “We really turned it on in the second set,” said Murphy.

            Newbury battled back to force a Murphy timeout with his team leading 9-8, and the Gators responded with a 5-0 run with Patch serving. A Johnston kill forced Taylor’s second timeout trailing 19-12, and a Gross block iced a 25-16 victory.

            Taylor’s Nighthawks returned the favor in a 25-16 Game 3 win. A 9-8 Newbury lead ballooned to 17-9 after an 8-1 run on serves from Regina Sibilia (Agawam, MA/Agawam) and Tricia Corriveau (Coventry, RI/Coventry), respectively. Murphy’s second timeout of the set, this at 22-12, did little to halt the Nighthawks momentum as Newbury cruised to a 2-1 match lead.

            The rest of the night belonged to Johnston and the Gators. While the second and third matches mimicked each other with reciprocal scores, Game 4 resembled the nip-and-tuck match opener, except it was the home team that came out on top thanks in large part to the Gators sophomore middle hitter.

            Following freshman Imara Jackson’s (Boston, MA/Mystic Valley) service ace, Johnston’s block put the Gators in front 7-4. Back-to-back aces from Patch, who tied for match-high honors with four, gave Pine Manor a 12-9 lead, but Newbury fought back to force ties at every point between 16 and 20.

            Monster spikes from Johnston regained the lead at 21-20 and provided insurance at 23-21, and the Gators never looked back, winning 25-22.

            In a deciding set that opened with teams trading service aces, neither team led by more than a point until a late Pine Manor run that ultimately decided the match. Trailing 11-10, the Gators scored four straight points on Johnston serves.  A Jackson spike tied the set at 11-11 and Ashley Carusone’s (Nashua, NH/North) kill ended it, 15-12.

            Also in her first college match, Carusone, like Patch, figured in the match leaders, pacing all players with 19 digs.

            For Newbury, which entered 2-0 after topping Anna Maria and Albertus Magnus 3-1 each, Martinez tallied 13 digs and Sibilia dished out 27 assists. Corriveau tied Patch and Johnston for match-high honors with four service aces.

            The Gators return to play Friday night at Regis in a 7:00 showdown with the Pride.

Volleyball Detailed Stats
Box Score - Pine Manor College
Newbury College vs Pine Manor
(09/08/2010 at Chestnut Hill, MA)

CHESTNUT HILL, MA -- With the fall sports season on the horizon, don't miss a second of the action with your printable 2010 Pine Manor College Fall Sports Schedule.

To print the schedule, select the poster below, right click print and choose print selection.

Pine Manor opens its fall seasons on Wednesday, as soccer travels to Mitchell at 4 p.m. and volleyball plays host to Newbury ay 7 p.m. Tennis opens on Thursday at Newbury at 3:30 p.m., and cross country runs at the Roger Williams Invitational Saturday morning at 11.

CHESTNUT HILL, MA -- Your reference guide for Pine Manor's 2010 fall sports teams has arrived.

The Pine Manor 2010 Fall Sports Media Guide & Fact Book is available for free download here.

The first of its kind from Pine Manor Athletics, the 28-page document offers a comprehensive look at Pine Manor's four fall sports programs, complete with player and coach biographies, career and team statistics, department and institution information, accomplishments, awards and more.

Please allow up to two minutes to download via high-speed internet access. This document requires Adobe Reader. To download Adobe Reader for free, click here.

“I'm extremely thankful and excited for this opportunity,” said Adams. “I'm ready to bring my passion and enthusiasm for the game to the student-athletes and the athletic department at Pine Manor.”

Adams starred collegiately at Nichols College in Dudley, MA. During her career at Nichols, she played a number of positions, including goalkeeper. She currently holds the record for the most saves in a season, with 200, set as a freshman, when she started all 14 games for the Bison.  

The following two years, Adams also played midfielder and defender. As a sophomore, she saw action in 13 games, starting 11. Despite playing 10 games in goal, she made good on her field opportunities, tallying two goals and three points on three shots.  

As a junior in 2007, she led Nichols to its first Commonwealth Coast Conference Tournament appearance, starting 12 of 13 contests. She finished among the Bison leaders in most offensive categories, including goals, with eight, and points, with 10.

A three-sport student-athlete who also played soccer and ice hockey at Nichols, a knee injury kept Adams out of action her senior season.  

A native of Braintree, MA, she began her lacrosse career as a member of the inaugural girls’ lacrosse team at Braintree High School. A midfielder and defender, she was also part of the school’s first girls’ ice hockey team. 

Adams gained experience as a girls’ lacrosse coach at Braintree for the past two seasons. She is also an assistant ice hockey coach at Westwood High School and a soccer coach at Bishop Feehan High School in Attleboro, MA.

She currently still plays competitive lacrosse and ice hockey in women's club leagues.

Adams graduated from Nichols in May of 2008 with a bachelor’s of science in business administration with a concentration in criminal justice. She currently resides in Attleboro.

Wallace earned her third consecutive All-GNAC First Team selection as a junior, volunteering for “Coats for Kids” clothing drive, “Walk for Hunger” fundraiser, "Pink Zone" cancer awareness effort (right) and showing leadership on-campus as a residence assistant for a second straight year. She earned the Pine Manor Scholar-Athlete award and was named to the GNAC Cross Country All-Sportsmanship Team in 2008-09, both honors she would renew a year later.

As a senior, Wallace undoubtedly etched her name in Pine Manor athletic and academic lore. On April 17, Wallace became the school’s all-time hits leader in a win over Emmanuel, surpassing the 200-hit milestone later that evening. She finished fifth nationally in slugging at a robust .910 slugging percentage and finished 41st in the nation in doubles, at 0.39 per game, earning Pine Manor’s Henry K. White Award for career achievement in athletics.

She also served as vice president of the science club and volunteered as a peer writing tutor for international students. Academically, the senior biology major and English minor was named valedictorian of the Pine Manor Class of 2010, graduating last month with a 3.98 grade point average.

This marks the second time in under a year that a Pine Manor student-athlete has received a league wide honor. Wallace’s softball teammate Kayla Nielsen was named 2009 GNAC Sportswoman of the Year last August.

Wallace is now a candidate for NCAA Woman of the Year. According to NCAA.org, the award “honors graduating student-athletes who have distinguished themselves throughout their collegiate careers in the areas of academic achievement, athletics excellence, community service and leadership.”

Ten finalists from Division III will be named by the NCAA in August. The national winner will be announced at the Woman of the Year Awards Dinner on October 17.

CHESTNUT HILL, MA – Waltham native Mike Murphy has been named Pine Manor head women’s volleyball coach, director of athletics Erin J. Brennen announced Thursday.

“We are excited to add Mike to our team,” said Brennen. “We are thrilled to add somebody of Mike’s expertise.”

Murphy guided the girls’ varsity team at his alma mater of Waltham High School to a 46-37 record over four consecutive seasons with improved records from 2004-2007, including a 41-17 (.707) record in league play. In 2006 and 2007, he led the Hawks to back-to-back state tournament appearances.

Prior to Waltham High, Murphy constructed a winner from scratch at Mass Bay Community College as the first-ever head coach of the men’s and women’s teams from 2001-2002. Murphy quickly built winning programs at Mass Bay, taking both the men’s and women’s teams to the postseason in their inaugural season in 2001.

In 1998, he returned to Waltham High for the first time as an assistant coach on the boys team, on which he starred from 1986-1988.

Pine Manor returns five starters from a team that went 1-22 a season ago. The Gators graduated only one senior and return eight upperclassmen in 2010.

Softball's Courtney Wallace, recently named All-Great Northeast Athletic Conference First Team catcher for a record fourth time, is the subject of a feature article in today's Portland Press Herald.

Staff writer Mike Lowe details the outstanding senior season, legacy at Pine Manor and future plans of Wallace, a graduating biology major and Steep Falls, ME native. Read the article in its entirety by clicking here (no subscription necessary).

Wallace, who led the Gators in almost all offensive categories as a senior, graduates as Pine Manor's career hits leader (201) and is second all-time in doubles (46), home runs (31) and runs batted in (140).

Senior Courtney Wallace earned Pine Manor's career achievement award, academic achievement award and split the 2010 Athlete of the Year award with teammate and classmate Michelle Myers at the Gators annual awards banquet Wednesday night.

Wallace was presentedby director of athletics Erin J. Brennen with the Henry K. White award, which is given to a senior for outstanding career achievement in athletics. An All-Great Northeast Athletic Conference First Team catcher in all four years at Pine Manor, Wallace (left) graduates as the Gators career leader in hits (201), triples (12) and total bases (364) and is second in at-bats (455), doubles (46), home runs (31) and RBI's (140).

In addition to earning the Gators top career billing, Wallace also won the department's Scholar-Athlete Award for the second straight year. A two-sport athlete and biology major, Wallace earned the award, which she was presented by her cross country coach Dr. Bill Stargard, with a 3.98 cumulative grade point average.

While Wallace took home the top career and academic awards for herself, she split Athlete of the Year award with classmate and softball teammate Michelle Myers (right). Wallace led the team with a .461 batting average, 41 hits, eight home runs and a GNAC-best .910 slugging percentage this season. Also a two-sport student-athlete, Myers paced the Gators with five triples and was the vocal and emotional leader of both the softball and soccer teams.

A four-year volleyball letter winner and softball teammate of Wallace and Myers who split the award with them a year earlier, Veronica Vozzolo was chosen for a record third consecutive year as the White Letter Award winner. Reserved for "an upper-class student athlete that best exemplifies the attributes that make Pine Manor College and PMC Athletics special, including: inclusivity, cooperation, care for the common good and relationship based learning," Vozzolo was chosen as the lone recipient this year. She earned the award largely due to her work in promoting and producing "The Tucker James Project," which has raised awareness for Tucker Garcia, a transgender Pine Manor student-athlete.

A teammate of Wallace, Myers and Vozzolo on the diamond, freshman Tia Nelson (left) won the Peter G. Ellis Award, which recognizes a first-year student "for demonstrating dedication, spirit and ability." Nelson, who earned GNAC Rookie of the Week honors on the hardwood and led the Gators with 32 three-pointers, also led Pine Manor softball with six wins and 143 2/3 innings pitched.

Lacrosse's Jessica Pinckney earned the Gator Pride Award, which is reserved for a student-athlete who "displays pride in her respective team" and in Pine Manor Athletics. A senior from Boston, Pinckney was also recognized with teammate Elaine Rodriguez, as well as Wallace, Myers and Vozzolo, for being four-year letter winners in their respective sports.

Campus safety officer Jason Fopiano took home the Gator Athletic Award. Given for outstanding pride and dedication to the athletic department in the eyes of the administration. In addition to being a fan of Pine Manor Athletics, Fopiano frequently chauffeured a number of teams on extensive road trips throughout the academic year.

For a complete list of last night's winners, as well as historical lists of winners, click here.

For Wallace, the honor marks a record fourth consecutive season as the league's best backstop. Perhaps the GNAC's dominant offensive force of her era, the catcher ranked among the Top 5 in the conference with a .461 batting average, eight home runs and a robust .910 slugging percentage, good for eighth nationally.

On Tuesday, Wallace (left), who also spent time at third base and center field as a senior, became Pine Manor's all-time hits leader in a 10-3 win over Emmanuel. Later that night, she passed the 200-hit milestone, ending her storied career in Chestnut Hill with 201.

Nielsen, meanwhile, enjoyed a breakout sophomore season. After missing the entire non-conference schedule with a foot injury, the catcher-infielder emerged as the perfect compliment to Wallace in GNAC play.

In 20 league games, Nielsen (right) tallied 20 hits, 12 of which went for extra bases, good for a .698 slugging percentage. Her six home runs place her in the Top 5 in the league and came in only 63 at-bats, which was enough for placement among the GNAC's best according to the league's coaches.

Freshman pitcher Tia Nelson was named to the league's All-Sportsmanship Team. Nelson, who also played third base, led the team and ranked among the league leaders with 143 2/3 innings pitched.

Rivier College won the league championship Sunday afternoon with a 1-0 win over Emerson. Monica White, starting pitcher for Rivier, was named GNAC Player of the Year.

BOSTON, MA -- Somewhat fittingly, the last game of Courtney Wallace's storied career was played at Roberto Clemente Field Tuesday night in Boston's Fenway District. 

In his final game, the Pittsburgh Pirates legendary outfielder joined baseball lore in tallying his 3,000th career hit. Wallace, meanwhile, etched her name even further into the Pine Manor record books in Tuesday's opening game and set a career milestone in the nightcap, as Pine Manor split with Emmanuel by winning 10-3 and falling 6-5.

Wallace crushed a pair of home runs, the second of which crowned her as Pine Manor's all-time hits leader, in the Game 1 rout. With her second hit, Wallace passed Meghan Goss for first place with career hit No. 198.

In Game 2, the senior catcher-turned-center fielder made a bid at her third home run of the day with an opposite-field ground rule double for her 200th career hit. She would wait only an inning for her third shot of the day and eighth of the season, a towering blast to center field that sailed deep into the Boston night.

The Gators cruised in what became an offensive explosion, with Wallace, in addition to her two homers, going 3-for-4, scoring three runs and driving in three more. Sophomore Kayla Nielsen also went 3-for-4, scoring twice and doubling twice. Junior Jess Kennedy went 2-for-4 with two runs and two RBI's, and both Siobhan Raymond and Michelle Campbell also went 2-for-4.

Freshman Tia Nelson picked up her sixth win of the season in the opener, going the distance in fanning nine, allowing six hits and walking two.

The Saints overcame a 5-3 sixth-inning deficit in making a winner out of starter Kathryn Copp in Game 2. For Pine Manor, Raymond took the loss in the final start of her career despite nine strikeouts, going 2-for-3 with 2 RBI's at the plate. 

The Gators wrap up 2010 with a 6-25 record, going 6-16 in GNAC play.

Playing in her last game as a Gator, senior Elaine Rodriguez led the way for Pine Manor with two goals. Freshman Myrell Redmond added a score of her own, completing her freshman season with one or more goals in all 10 games in which she played.

For the Hawks, Nicole Lijana and Morgan Hazen led all players with five goals each, including Lijana's 100th career goal.

After Becker took a 3-0 lead, Rodriguez scored her first goal at 25:33, but the Hawks answered with four straight goals to take a comfortable 7-1 lead, never to look back. Becker took a 13-1 lead into the intermission and outscored the Gators 4-2 after halftime.

Colleen Tencza made a game-high 10 saves for Pine Manor, which was outshot 30-14 and outgained 22-14 in ground balls. 

With the win, Becker improves to 4-8, while Pine Manor ends the season 2-9.

Sophomore Beth Deegan and freshman Myrell Redmond scored three goals each for Pine Manor.

Redmond got the Gators on the board with an unassisted goal at the 29:29 mark to take a 1-0 lead, but Simmons retalliated with seven straight goals from seven different players. Nine Sharks scored goals in the first half alone, as Simmons took a 12-2 lead into the intermission.

Beth Deegan strung consecutive goals together in a 90-second span midway through the second half, but by then the home team had opened up a 16-3 lead, as Bayleigh Isherwood became the last of 11 Sharks to find the back of the net. Redmond added her 20th goal of the year, but Simmons cruised to an easy 18-6 victory.

Justine Beauchamp and Rachel Wallace tied Deegan and Redmond for game-high honors with three goals each, while Mikaela McSherry added two goals and three assists for the Sharks.

Deegan's three goals give her a team-leading 26 for the season. Redmond's third goal gives the freshman 20 for the season and extends her goal scoring streak to nine games to open her career.

Pine Manor closes its 2010 season on the road at Becker Tuesday night at 6:30.

The Gators exploded for a season-high 17 hits in support of Game 2 starter Tia Nelson, who pitched a four-hitter in picking up her fourth win of the season.

In Game 1, Michelle Myers went 2-for-3 with her league-leading fifth triple and two runs scored. Courtney Wallace went 1-for-2 with two RBI's and two walks, and Kayla Nielsen went 2-for-4 with three runs. Jess Kennedy also went 2-for-4 in the early game.

In the night cap, senior Siobhan Raymond went 3-for-5 with two RBI's, and Wallace went 3-for-4 with four runs scored. Kaylyn Delgado drove in three, while Nielsen scored three times in the 9-2 win.

With her four hits, Wallace moved to within two hits of tying Meghan Goss as the all-time hits leader in Pine Manor history.

The Gators take on Emmanuel, visiting the Saints on Saturday at noon. On Sunday, Pine Manor will honor seniors Wallace, Raymond, Michelle Myers and Veronica Vozzolo before its noon home double header against Albertus Magnus.

Leading scorer Beth Deegan added three goals and a team-best seven ground balls for Pine Manor, which led for almost the entire game after taking a 5-3 lead into halftime. Jen Gross' second yellow card with 18:01 left in the second half put the Gators at a disadvantage the remainder of the way. However, the visitors retaliated with three late goals to seal what became a tight win in which both team earned 27 ground balls and took 27 shots.

Deegan's second score with 22:23 left in the second gave the Gators their biggest lead, at 8-4. Elms countered with five unanswered goals, four from Katlyn Harrington, over the next 17:00 to take its only lead, 9-8 at the 5:21 mark.

Redmond, though, was took much for the Blazers to handle, as she found the back of the net twice within 30 seconds just inside the 5:00 mark to regain the lead. Deegan then put the Gators ahead 11-9, and Jess Blair's club held off Elms in spite of another Harrington goal in the final minute to preserve the win and move to 2-7 on the season.

For Elms, which fell to 0-10, Harrington tied Redmond with a game-high six scores, all coming after the 3:09 mark of the first half. Harrington also led all players with eight ground balls.

Sophomore Molly Manley and senior Elaine Rodriguez added goals for Pine Manor, which needed every one of freshman goalkeeper Colleen Tencza's 10 saves.

Pine Manor stays in non-conference play, traveling to Husson on Saturday at noon.

With the international tiebreaker in effect in the top of the eighth, a Sharks error on Tia Nelson’s lead-off sacrifice bunt scored Kaylyn Delgado from second, putting the Gators on top 6-5.

Michelle Myers’ fourth triple of the year scored Nelson, who was safe on her sac bunt, and Myers (left) came around to score on a Michelle Campbell one-out single to right.

Leading 8-5 going to the bottom half of the inning, Pine Manor needed almost every run it just earned. In the same game in which her team, 12 days ago, squandered a 4-1 fifth-inning lead and then a seventh-inning lead, Nelson was again forced to work out of a bases-loaded jam. With one out and one run already in, Myers started a 4-3 double play that ended it, locking up the 4-3 win.

For the game, Campbell went 2-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored, Courtney Wallace went 2-for-4 with two RBI’s and two runs, and Nelson went 2-for-3 with two RBI’s and a run scored. Myers’ triple moves her into second place in the GNAC.

After a nail-biting 4-3 win against St. Joseph (CT) yesterday, Nelson’s win is now her second in two days.  The win marks the third time in the last two seasons Pine Manor has bested Simmons in extra innings.

Pine Manor returns to play on Friday at Suffolk at 3:30 p.m.

The Gators got on the board thanks to some two-out lightning in the bottom of the third. Kayla Nielsen (Saco, ME/Thornton) doubled home Michelle Myers (Freeport, NY/Freeport) from first and came around to score on Courtney Wallace’s (Steep Falls, ME/Bonny Eagle) single to right.

After Kaylyn Delgado (Worcester, MA/Bartlett) walked to load the bases, Siobhan Raymond (left, Winchendon, MA/Gardner) struck the big blow with a single to center that put the Gators on top 4-0.

The Blue Jays put two on base with no out in the top of the fourth, but settled for a April Campanella (Berlin, CT/Berlin) sac bunt that scored Emily Hummel (Hebron, CT/RHAM) as its only run.

Pine Manor got the run back two innings later with Michelle Campbell’s (Baltimore, MD/Seton Keough) single that plated Nelson (Rockport, MA/Rockport), increasing the lead to 4-1 after six.

Nelson, meanwhile, had been in cruise control on the mound, but that was about to change. After pitching around trouble for most of the first four innings, the freshman settled down in the fifth and sixth, only to get into trouble again in the seventh.

Errors from Raymond and Nelson with a walk in between soon found the pitcher in a one-out, bases loaded jam. Then, with a 1-2 count to Stephanie Valerio (Wolcott, CT/St. Paul), the second base player laced a ground rule double to right that pulled the Blue Jays to within a run, at 4-3.

Nelson then got Melanie Bush (Bristol, CT/Eastern) to tap into a fielder’s choice, and with the bases again loaded, froze Jackie Peck (Montville, CT/Montville) to end it. In all, Nelson struck out six, walked three and allowed three runs, none of which were earned.

For the Jays, Hummel struck out four over six innings, scattering eight hits and giving up four runs, all earned. At the plate, Hummel went 1-for-3 with a run, while Valerio went 2-for-4 with two RBI’s.

Seniors Wallace and Raymond each went 2-for-3, with the latter driving in two. Kayla Nielsen (Saco, ME/Thornton) went 1-for-3 with an RBI and a run scored.

The Jays struck first in the late game, getting one across in the first on a Hummel double that plated Valerio after her lead-off walk. St. Joseph added two more in the second, both on a two-out Valerio single, which put the visitors up 3-0. With Raymond on in relief in the third, the senior induced a run-scoring fielder’s choice before striking out Campanella and Ashley Ryan to get out of the second-and-third jam.

St. Joseph started Kristin Parente (Burlington, CT/Lewis Mills) blanked the Gators through two, but ran into trouble with two outs in the third. Myers doubled to center and trotted home one batter later on Nielsen’s line drive homer down the left field line.

Wallace then reached on an error and Raymond walked, before Parente got some big time help from her defense. Delgado skied a two-strike offering to shallow left-center, but Nicole Williams came racing over from center to make a sliding, backhanded catch, saving at least one run.

From there, the story of the game was the relief pitching. In relief of Nelson, Raymond came on for five innings of one-hit, shutout ball, striking out six and walking only one.

Unfortunately for Kristi Lyman’s Gators, Hummel was just as sharp in relief of Parente, blanking the Gators on two hits over three, striking out four in picking up the save. In tallying the win, Parente let up two earned over four, fanning a pair and walking two.

Pine Manor will resume its tie game with Simmons in the top of the eighth inning tomorrow afternoon at Boston Common and plays on Friday at Suffolk at 3:30 p.m.

Freshman goalkeeper Colleen Tencza made a game- and career-high 18 saves. Sophomore Beth Deegan led the Gators with four goals, and freshman Myrell Redmond followed with three goals.

"We played really, really well," said Pine Manor head coach Jess Blair, whose team utilized only 10 players. "We competed. We played lacrosse."

After the Raiders took a 5-1 lead, an unassisted Deegan goal snapped a string of three straight Rivier scores. Redmond's first goal pulled the Gators to within 6-3 in the final 2:00 of the first half. The Raiders answered with goals from Sara Wilson and Brittany Gunn in the last minute of the half to take an 8-3 lead into the locker room.

An Alyssa Renaud goal just under four minutes into the half opened the scoring in the second, and the teams them alternated goals for the next 20 minutes, when Bridget Emerson's second score made it a 13-6 game. Pine Manor tacked on two goals in the final 5:19 in the 13-8 defeat.

Deegan's four goals came on seven shots. Redmond's career-high three goals extends her streak to seven consecutive games with a goal to start her career.

Pine Manor travels to Elms on Wednesday night at 7 p.m.

For the Wildcats (8-22, 7-11 GNAC), Korissa Bailey went 2-for-4 in each game, driving in one in Game 1 and two in Game 2, and Olivia England went 1-for-2 with a pair of runs in both games.

Pine Manor’s Courtney Wallace went a combined 3-for-5 with two runs and two RBI’s, Michelle Campbell went 3-for-6 and Jess Kennedy went 3-for-7 with a pair of doubles.

The Gators touched Wildcats starter Rachel Marino for a run in the first inning of Game 1, as Courtney Wallace doubled home fellow senior Michelle Myers.

Johnson & Wales answered in the top of the second, with pitcher Rachel Marino tying the game on a one-out, RBI ground out. Olivia England’s two-run double then highlighted a rally featuring four unearned runs on three hits and a pair of Gators errors in the third.

The Gators came back with consecutive doubles from Michelle Campbell and Jess Kennedy, who scored on a Kayla Nielsen sac fly to pull the Gators to within 4-3. A home run from reigning GNAC Player of the Week tied the game 4-4, but the Wildcats again answered.

A Bailey double scored England, and Holiann Barry came home on Liana Rivera’s ground out, putting the Wildcats ahead 6-4.

Marino silenced the Gators in the seventh following a leadoff single from Tia Nelson to lock up the 6-4 win.

In Game 2, Barry’s first inning, two-out single, after a wild pitch, turned into a Rivera RBI that put the Wildcats up 1-0 after one. The Wildcats took a 3-0 lead on Lauren Lomonaco’s two-run double in the third.

Tia Nelson’s two-out single to left plated Wallace to get the Gators on the board in the sixth, but Amanda Sullivan struck out Claudine Alizee, standing two. Sullivan worked around a pair of singles and a walk in the seventh, striking out two and scattering seven hits in the 5-1 win.

Pine Manor (1-23, 1-14 GNAC) is in action again at home on Tuesday, taking on St. Joseph (CT) at 3:30 p.m.

Saco, Maine native Kayla Nielsen took in some home cooking in spite of the losses, crushing three homers in a 4-for-7 day at the plate. Courtney Wallace also enjoyed a standout day at the plate in her final return to Maine, going 3-for-7 with three runs scored.

The Game 1 loss saw starting pitcher Tia Nelson fall short in her bid for her second career victory, as the Monks rallied for five in the bottom of the sixth after the Gators took a 9-5 lead in the top of the inning. Nielsen and Wallace each scored twice in the opener, as outfielder Kaylyn Delgado enjoyed the best performance of her freshman campaign, going  3-for-3 with two RBI's.

After the Gators took a 5-4 lead thanks to four unearned runs in the fourth inning of Game 2, St. Joseph's stormed back with three in the bottom half in its 8-6 win. Nielsen's third solo bomb of the day and fifth homer of the season pulled Pine Manor to within two in the top of the seventh. Following a Siobhan Raymond two-out walk, Delgado flew out to third representing the potential tying run.

Pitching her second game of the day, freshman Tia Nelson struck out three over six innings, going 2-for-3 at the plate.

Pine Manor returns home tomorrow, playing host to Johnson & Wales at noon.

Sophomore Beth Deegan and freshman Myrell Redmond scored the Gators goals. Redmond has now scored a goal in six consecutive games to start her Pine Manor career.

Norwich took a 9-0 lead into halftime and upped it to 10-0 before Deegan got the Gators on the board with an unassisted goal. For the game, the Cadets outshot Pine Manor 36-9 and earned a 51-22 advantage in ground balls over the undermanned Gators.

In goal, Colleen Tencza made nine saves for Pine Manor.

The Gators are in action again on Monday at Rivier at 7 p.m.

A one-out Jess Kennedy (Apponequet/Lakeville) double down the right field line went for naught for the Gators in the third inning of Game 1.  Smith induced a lineout from Michelle Campbell and struck out Kayla Nielsen struck out to get out of the jam, keeping the game scoreless after three.

The dreaded lead-off walk came around to haunt Gators starter Tia Nelson (Rockport, MA/Rockport) an inning later, when, to open the fourth, she walked Christina Naramore (Ammissville, VA/Rappahannock). Smith pinch ran for Naramore and scored on a Sierra Wood (Las Vegas, NV/Palo Verde) single to left, putting the Lions ahead, 1-0. Jaclyn Castalleno (Staten Island, NY/Tottenville) then struck the big blow, plating Wood and Brittany Martin ( with a two-run, two-out single to left, increasing the lead to 3-0 in the middle of four.

Emerson tacked on a bit of insurance an inning later on a Smith ground out that plated Fargo following her lead-off triple to center.

The Gators got on the board when Michelle Myers (Freeport, NY/Freeport) doubled to the fence in center, coming around to score on Kennedy’s opposite-field double to left-center. Campbell followed with a ground out to short on which Kennedy was thrown out trying to advance to third, ending the hopes of a Gators rally in the fifth.

Smith finished the Gators off without incident in the sixth and seventh in a 4-1 victory. The junior struck out three, scattering seven hits.

Fargo, Naramore, Martin and junior Jilisa Rawding (Tewksbury, MA/Tewksbury) all collected two hits in support of Smith.

For Pine Manor, Nelson struck out five, allowing four runs, all earned.

The Lions put two on the board with the help of two errors in the first inning of Game 2. In her first career start at third base, Courtney Wallace’s error allowed Fargo to reach and score on a Naramore double. Naramore came around to put Emerson up 2-0 on a Martin single to center, which was bobbled by Kaylyn Delgado.

Emerson went up 4-0 with two runs on the aid of three more Gators errors in the fourth. Nikki Battaglia (Freehold, NJ/Freehold) scored after a lead-off double, the Lions only run of the inning. In the fifth, Emerson plated two on a bases loaded double from Martin to go up 6-0.

Lions starter Sara Murray cruised, carrying a one-hitter into the fifth and striking out three in four innings. The sophomore constantly kept the Gators off-balance, changing speeds and allowing a Myers single in the fourth as the Gators lone hit. Kelsey Tuthill (Middlefield, CT/Suffield) relieved Murray and struck out the side in a perfect fifth, locking up a 10-0 victory in five innings.

Pine Manor (1-17, 1-8 GNAC) travels to Norwich on Friday for a 3:30 p.m. double header and to St. Joseph’s (ME) on Saturday for a double dip starting at noon.  Emerson (16-6, 11-1 GNAC) takes on Emmanuel on Friday at 6 p.m.

Emerson vs Pine Manor (Apr 06, 2010)

Pine Manor Softball
Emerson at Pine Manor
Apr 06, 2010 at Chestnut Hill, MA (Pine Manor Field)

Score by Innings                  R  H  E

-----------------------------------------

Emerson............. 000 310 0 -  4 11  0

Pine Manor.......... 000 010 0 -  1  7  1

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Emerson vs Pine Manor (Apr 06, 2010)

Pine Manor Softball
Emerson at Pine Manor
Apr 06, 2010 at Chestnut Hill, MA (Pine Manor Field)

Score by Innings               R  H  E

--------------------------------------

Emerson............. 202 24 - 10  8  1

Pine Manor.......... 000 00 -  0  1  6

--------------------------------------

The senior catcher hit .538 for the week and clubbed her way to a whopping 1.461 slugging percentage. In addition to her seventh-inning home run in a tied game at Simmons, Wallace secured the final outs of the sixth and seventh innings on collisions at home plate in Game 2 against the Sharks.

Wallace is second on the team in hitting, with a .438 average, hitting .542 in eight conference games with all of her team-best four of her home runs coming in league play. She leads the team with 16 RBI's, five doubles and an .875 slugging percentage and is perfect in 80 chances in the field.

A First Team All-GNAC catcher in all of her first three seasons, Wallace's Gators are in action Tuesday afternoon, playing host to Emerson College. After hitting the road on Friday and Saturday at Norwich and St. Joseph's (ME), Pine Manor returns home Sunday at noon against Johnson & Wales.

 CHESTNUT HILL, MA – Simmons bested Pine Manor, 5-1, behind seven strikeouts from Courtney Collier (Bolton, MA/Nashoba) in Game 1 of the teams’ Great Northeast Athletic Conference double header Friday evening. Game 2 was postponed in the eighth inning of a 5-5 game thanks to a seventh inning home run and two clutch plays at the plate from Pine Manor catcher Courtney Wallace (Steep Falls, ME/Bonny Eagle).

Getting her second start at first base this season, Jess Kennedy (Lakeville, MA/Apponequet) led off the game with an infield single, advancing to second on a Michelle Campbell (Baltimore, MD/Seton Keough) sac bunt. The red-hot Wallace (Steep Falls, ME/Bonny Eagle), who homered in three straight games entering Friday, pulled a single down the right field line, playing Kennedy from second.

Simmons answered with two, leading the bottom half off with back-to-back singles to center from Emily Nallband (Litchfield, CT/Litchfield) and pitcher Collier. Annie Thompson (Pacific Palisades, CA/Archer) followed with a triple to right, but Collier was gunned out at the plate on a Michelle Myers (Freeport, NY/Freeport) relay throw. The Gators returned the favor on an Ashley Wheeler (Nashua, NH/Nashua) line drive snared by Kennedy at first, who overthrew Siobhan Raymond (Winchendon, MA/Gardner) at third, allowing Thompson to trot home to give the Sharks a 2-1 lead.

Simmons struck with two outs an inning later, when No. 9 hitter Steph Murray (Groveland, MA/Pentucket) doubled down the line in left and was singled home by Nallband, putting Simmons ahead 3-1.

After the second, both pitchers settled down considerably. Pine Manor freshman Tia Nelson (Rockport, MA/Rockport) worked her way out of jams all day, stranding two Sharks in the second and fourth, and leaving the bases loaded in the third and fifth, striking out Murray looking to keep it a 3-1 game after five.

The third time loading the bases was the charm, as the Simmons sticks provided some insurance for Collier in the sixth. A one-out Leah Derderian (Boylston, MA/Tahanto) single with the sacks packed scored the pitcher and Thompson, who finished 2-for-4, giving Collier more of a cushion than she needed.

Over seven innings, Collier allowed only five hits and struck out seven, including two in the seventh.

Nelson scattered 12 hits, allowing five runs, four earned, fanning three, walking three and hitting two.

Raymond went 2-for-3 for the Gators. Kennedy went 1-for-3 with a run, and Wallace went 1-for-2 with a walk and an RBI.

Collier scored in the first for a second game in a row, coming around from second on a Wheeler single. As Nelson did for Pine Manor in Game 1, Raymond worked her way out of an early jam in stranding two, keeping the Sharks within a run after one.

The Gators got the run back with some help from Simmons in the second. Shortstop Kayla Nielsen (Saco, ME/Thornton Academy) reached on a Thompson error, advanced on Thompson’s throwing error and scored on a Nelson single to left.

After relieving Raymond, Nelson helped herself with some more help from the Sharks. Wallace, this time, led off by reaching on an error, this one a Murray miscue. Again with two outs, Nelson knocked home Wallace with a single to right to pull the Gators ahead, 2-1.

Pine Manor put up two more in the fifth. After being hit by a pitch, Kennedy came around to score on a Raymond single. Then, with two down, Campbell was chased home by a Wallace single that put the Gators on top, 4-1.

Simmons got two back in the sixth, and it would have been more if not for Wallace. With the bases loaded following a Desiree Bourassa (Rochester, VT/Rochester) base on balls, Amanda Gould (Fremont, NH/Aquinas) doubled to right center, plating, Derderian and Thomas. With Bourassa being waved home, Nielsen took Campbell’s relay throw and gunned a one-hopper slightly up the third base line. Wallace scooped the throw, trapping it between her mitt and bare right hand and put the tag on a sliding Bourassa, holding on to the ball as the Gators held on to a 4-3 lead after six.

Her gritty defensive play soon turned into a two-run swing with just one swing. With one out, Wallace crushed a Collier offering over the center field fence for her fourth home run in the last five games, providing insurance that the Gators would soon need.

The bottom of the seventh began auspiciously, when the normally sure-handed Raymond booted a routine Murray chopper. A Kayla Nielsen fielding error let Murray in, then, after a force out and a pair of walks, Derderian stepped to the plate with runners at first and second and two outs trailing 5-4.

She lifted a high pop up to shallow left that, with Campbell converging from center, popped out of left fielder Flavia Vicente’s glove. Nielsen’s relay throw to the plate was on the money, and Wallace put the tag on Wheeler to send the game to extras.

With the game tied 5-5 going into the eighth, the game was called due to darkness. The game is set to be continued where it was left.

NEWTON, MA -- First-year Gators head coach Kristi Lyman earned her first career victory, as did freshman starting pitcher Tia Nelson, as Pine Manor salvaged a split by taking Game 2 at Mount Ida Wednesday afternoon, 5-3. Three late runs led the Mustangs to a 4-1 win in the early game.

"It would have been nice to have two, but it felt good," said Lyman after her first managerial win. "It starts with one."

Courtney Wallace homered in both halves of the double header, going a combined 4-for-8 on the day and going deep for the third straight game. Lead-off hitter Jess Kennedy went 4-for-7 with a double and a triple, and Kaylyn Delgado and Kayla Nielsen (right) added solo homers as the Gators won for the first time in 2010.

Wallace's first longball tied Game 1 in the fifth, but freshman Ashley White answered with a solo shot of her own in the bottom half. Mount Ida added two more on three hits in the sixth to pick up the win for Danielle Meeker, who threw seven innings of one-run ball.

Senior Siobhan Raymond took the loss for Pine Manor. She struck out six over six innings, allowing three earned runs and going 2-for-2 at the plate, as well.

Kennedy scored on a double from Nielsen, who came around to score on a wild pitch to start Game 2. The Mustangs immediately answered, as RBI doubles from Courtney Rebello and Danielle Mitchell tied the game in the bottom half of the inning at 2-2.

Two innings later, Maine natives Nielsen and Wallace broke out the lumber for back-to-back jacks, supplying more offense than Nelson (left) would need in earning her first victory as a Gator.

The freshman settled down after a rocky first, allowing just one run on three hits over the final six innings. In all, Nelson allowed three runs, all earned, and six hits, striking out three and walking none.

Of all teams, Mount Ida might be the happiest to have played its last regualr season game against Courtney Wallace. In her last four games against the Mustangs, the three-time All-GNAC First Teamer has homered in a  four and crushed five in all. Over her last five games against Mount Ida, going back to 2008, Wallace has 11 hits in 19 at-bats for an amazing .578 average, scoring eight runs and driving in seven.

Wallace's Gators (1-14, 1-5 GNAC) play Simmons on Friday in a double header starting at 3:30 p.m. at Pine Manor field.

"It just really came together today," said second-year Pine Manor head coach Jess Blair.

Sophomores Beth Deegan (left) and Molly Manley, who entered the game as the Gators leading scorers with 11 and six goals, respectively, paced the Gators with three goals each. After the teams went into halftime tied at 4-4, the first of Manley's two second-half goals broke a 6-6 tie with 20:27 to play, giving the Gators the lead for good.

Senior Elaine Rodriguez and freshman Myrell Redmond, who entered the day tied for third with five goals on the season, followed with two goals each.

"Everyone played really well today," said Blair, whose Gators had dropped five straight to open the season. "Everyone played well. They're excited."

While it was the usual suspects who handled the scoring, goalkeeper Colleen Tencza and the Gators defense rose to the occasion, turning in their best performance yet. Playing minutes from home, the Meridan, CT native held the Blue Jays to only eight goals - over ten fewer than what teams had been averaging on the Gators through the team's first five games.

Tencza's fellow freshman Redmond, meanwhile, has scored one or more goals in the first five games of her career. Deegan, who entered the day ninth in the GNAC in shots per game at 5.20, extended her team lead in goals to 14.

In addition to being the first win of the season for Blair's Gators, it's a milestone win for the program, marking the first league win since lacrosse joined the GNAC three seasons ago.

The Gators outshot an opponent for the first time all season, 16-15. St. Joseph, meanwhile, lost in spite of a commanding 25-9 lead in ground balls.

Diana Soucier led the Blue Jays with five goals and five ground balls. Redmond scooped a team-high three ground balls for the Gators.

Pine Manor is in action again Tuesday night at 7, hitting the road to play Simmons at Winsor School in Boston.

CHESTNUT HILL, MA -- First-place Rivier scored in four of the last five innings to take Game 1 and rallied from a 4-0 deficit with 11 straight runs to take Game 2. Ace Monica White struck out 14 in Game 1 and picked up wins in both games of its sweep of Pine Manor, 6-1 and 11-4, Sunday afternoon in Great Northeast Athletic Conference softball action in Chestnut Hill.

Making her season debut following a foot injury, sophomore shortstop  Kayla Nielsen (right) touched White for her only real blemish in Game 1, a towering, seventh inning solo shot to left. Catcher Courtney Wallace got the Gators going much earlier in Game 2 with a three-run blast to the left field side of the center field to put Pine Manor on top 3-0 after the first. The Raiders, though, tied it with three in the fifth and broke it open with a six spot in the seventh in what turned out to be an 11-4 win.

White tripled and scored on a Taylor Cournoyer single to center in giving the Raiders a 1-0 lead in the third inning of Game 1. An inning later, Jess Mellen scored on an Amanda Ryan fielder's choice, and White plated catcher Katie Bachinski with a ground out in the fifth.

A Cournoyer single chased home Bachinski in a two-run seventh before Nielsen spoiled White's shutout bid with one out in the bottom of the inning in Rivier's 6-1 win. Cournoyer went 3-for-4 with two run scored and two driven in, while Bachinski, Mellen and Ryan collected two hits a piece.

Wallace went 2-for-3 for the Gators. Freshman pitcher Tia Nelson scattered 13 hits and struck out five for Pine Manor, while White allowed only five hits in going the distance.

Wallace's three-run blast to the left field side of the center field fence put the Gators up 3-0, and the home team scored again, as Jess Kennedy's double to center scored Kaylyn Delgado in the second inning of the late game.

Starter Siobhan Raymond cruised early, allowing just one hit through her first three innings. Rivier  (13-1, 4-0) tied it in the fifth on a two-run Bachinski double that plated Ryan and Brenna Campbell. After taking the lead on Ryan's solo homer to left in the sixth, Cambell's grand slam gave White more insurance that she would need.

The Game 1 victor worked three shutout innings out of the pen, allowing three hits and striking out three in picking up her second win of the day.

Cournoyer again went 3-for-4 with two RBI's, and Bachinski and Mellen again tallied two hits in making up for a rocky start from Campbell, who lasted only two innings.

Like Nelson, Raymond gave up 13 hits in taking the loss for Pine Manor (0-13, 0-4).

Pine Manor travels to Mount Ida on Wednesday at 3 p.m. Rivier (12-1, 6-0) travels to Suffolk on Thursday at 3 p.m.

Beth Deegan broke the Pine Manor drought with an unassisted score at 23:50. The Lions went into halftime with a 13-1 lead, having outshot the Gators 27-7 and outgained the visitors 18-5 in ground balls.

The Lions scored six straight to open the second before Deegan's second goal of the game in the final minutes. Emerson was led by Nicole Lecuyer, Christina Riccitelli and Amy Gervis, who scored three goals a piece.

Pine Manor returns to action on Saturday at St. Joseph (CT) at noon.

Jess Kennedy (Lakeville, MA/Apponequet), who went 3-for-5 with two runs and three driven in on the day, led off the Gators half of the first with a double to the gap in right-center, advancing to third on a Michelle Campbell (Baltimore, MD/Seton Keough) groundout. Courtney Wallace (Steep Falls, ME/Bonny Eagle) then wrapped a double inside the left field line that plated Kennedy, getting the Gators on the board with a 1-0 lead.

In the top of the second, freshman hurler Tia Nelson (Rockport, MA/Rockport) struck out the side in order for the first time in her college career. An inning later, the Lasers caught up to Nelson for two runs on two hits and two Gators errors. Back-to-back singles from Rachelle Haas (Middleton, MA/Masconomet) and Talia DeChiara (Kingston, MA/Silver Lake) each drove in one, with Nelson earning her second strikeout of the inning, fanning clean-up batter Ashley Laramie (Lynn, MA/Classical) with DeChiara on third to escape further damage. 

With the bases loaded in the top of the sixth, Nelson wasn’t so fortunate. After inducing a fielders choice groundout for a second out, a Kerrie Starkey (Keene, NH/Keene) single to left scored Tricia Culver (Northampton, MA/Northampton) and Nikki Giatis (Billerica, MA/Memorial), giving the Lasers a 4-1 cushion.

The Pine Manor offense, shutout in its final two games in Florida, came to Nelson’s aid immediately. Freshman Flavia Vicente (Roxbury, MA/Jeremiah Burke) blooped a single into center, bringing up Kennedy, who launched her first Pine Manor homer (left) onto the rock pile beyond the right field fence. Michelle Myers (Freeport, NY/Freeport) followed with a double to right, and Campbell flew out to deep center, which looked like it would advance Myers to third with Wallace coming to the plate.

Myers, however, was called out for leaving second base early, and Wallace tapped out to first, as what was a furious Gators rally ended abruptly, trialing 4-3. An inning later, Kaylyn Delgado (Worcester, MA/Bartlett) laced a single to center, but it was all the Gators could muster in the 4-3 loss.

Kennedy went 2-for-3 with two runs scored and two driven in for Pine Manor, and Starkey went 1-for-3 with two RBIs for the Lasers. Kirsten Mammola (North Reading, MA/Bishop Fenway) picked up the win, allowing six hits and three earned runs, striking out four. Nelson took the loss, surrendering eight hits for four runs, all earned, striking out a career-high nine.