Softball Score 30 Runs in Sweep of Elms College

CHICOPEE, Mass. – The MCLA Softball team took to the highway this afternoon, traveling to Chicopee, MA for a clash with the Elms College Blazers at Condon Field. The Trailblazers extended their win streak to eight games while sweeping away the home team for the second straight year. With the 30 runs scored across the two games, MCLA posted its most runs in a single doubleheader since it scored 38 in a single double-dip against Mass. Maritime on April 18, 2016.

THE BASICS:

• Date: Thursday, April 2, 2026
• Game #1: MCLA 13, Elms 4
• Game #2: MCLA 17, Elms 3
• Records: MCLA Trailblazers 9-7 (MASCAC 0-0) | College of Our Lady of the Elms Blazers 0-17 (GNAC 0-4)
• Series History: MCLA now leads the all-time series 22-4, including a sweep of a doubleheader last season by the scores of 16-4 and 13-5 on March 27, 2025, in North Adams. The Trailblazers also won the first-ever meeting of the teams on April 16, 1988, in North Adams by the score of 21-11.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Game #1
  • The Trailblazers jumped on the home team early and often in the first game of the afternoon, scoring at least one run in the first four innings, and posted multi-run frames in three of the four and were never seriously threatened en route to a 13-4 win.
  • MCLA scored four runs on four hits in the first inning to set the tone for the afternoon. Paxton Ebling (Pittsfield, MA) drove in the first run of the game with a bases-loaded walk before Amelia Leasure (Pittsfield, MA) doubled the lead to 2-0 with a sac fly to left field scoring Maggie Closinski (Rome, NY). Hannah Gilbert (Colrain, MA) and Ebling redoubled the lead when both scored on the same wild pitch to go ahead 4-0.
  • After Elms responded with a run of their own in the bottom of the first inning, scoring Amanda Raymond on a sacrifice fly to center field by Jill Dykema.
  • The Trailblazers then surpassed their first inning run total, pushing their total to double digits, starting with a two-run homerun on a 0-1 pitch by Nevaeh Lopez (Pittsfield, MA). Three batters later, Leasure lofted her second sac fly, again scoring Closinski. Alexandra Espel (Acra, NY) followed with an RBI infield bunt single, and Miranda Ranzoni (Adams, MA) added sac fly to right. Espel capped the six-run inning when she came home on a wild pitch.
  • Both teams posted a single run in the third inning, MCLA doing so without the benefit of a hit when Lopez scampered home on a wild pitch. The Blazers run saw Dykeman plate Raymond, this time with a single up the middle.
  • The Trailblazers added a pair of unearned runs in the fourth to push their lead to 13-2. Ranzoni and Gabrielle Goonan (Washington, MA) scored when the right fielder misplayed a ball off the bat of Hailey Peabody (W. Springfield, MA).
  • Elms plated a single run in both the fourth and fifth innings to lock the final score in at 13-4.
  • MCLA's Allie Mienaltowski recorded the win to improve to 4-3 while Dykema took the loss for the Blazers and dropped to 0-5.
• Game #2
  • The Trailblazers put together their second 17-run game of the season in the nightcap, matching their run total in their 17-2 win over Cobleskill on March 25^th. While the game with the Fighting Tigers saw all runs scored in a single frame, this time MCLA scored multi-run innings in the second and fourth innings while scoring one in the first and third.
  • The first inning Trailblazer run was scored by Peabody, who walked and then stole both second and third bases before scoring on a sac fly by Lopez. Elms responded by tying the game when Dykema scored on a wild pitch.
  • In the top of the second, MCLA tagged the home team for eight runs on six hits, the biggest blows being two RBI singles by Closinski and Gilbert.
  • An RBI double by Closinski scored Peabody in the third before the Trailblazers posted their second crooked number of the game with seven runs in the fourth. The first two runs came back-to-back RBI walks by Samantha Wheeler (Agawam, MA) and Hannah Mitchem (Baltimore, MD).
  • Juliana Johansen (Pittsfield, MA) went the distance for MCLA, bringing her record to 1-1, only allowing a single earned run while striking out six. Reece Hebert fell to 0-6 after allowing 12 runs, nine earned, in only three innings.

BEYOND THE BOX SCORE

• With their win in the second game, MCLA extended its win streak to eight games, the longest win streak since the Trailblazers won 27 straight games between March 31^st and May 5^th in 1995.
• The win streak surpassed the previous seven-game streak from April 15^th to April 22^nd in 1998.

UP NEXT:

On Saturday, MCLA will be back in action when it plays host to Fitchburg State at Shewcraft Field for a MASCAC matchup with the Falcons. The first pitch is scheduled for noon.

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