ATTLEBORO, Mass. – Lesley completed the regular season with a 14-2 conference record, earning the 2018 NECC Softball regular season crown and the top seed in the tournament. The Lynx are looking for their second straight NECC title, led by newcomer Jordan Day's .491 batting average at the plate, good for second in the league. Day also boasts 19 wins and 178 strikeouts in the circle, both tops in the conference. With the No. 1 seed, the Lynx will advance straight to the double-elimination round, and will host the winner of No. 4 Newbury College and No. 5 Elms College on Thursday, May 3 at 6:00 p.m.
Landing the second seed is Becker College, who finished the regular season with a record of 12-4. The Hawks are led by Samantha Lee, who finds herself in the top three in the league in ERA (3.23), wins (12) and strikeouts (117). Offensively, Lee is a power threat, as she is tied for tops in the league with seven home runs. Becker will head straight to double-elimination play, and will host the winner of No. 3 Bay Path University and No. 6 Mitchell College on Thursday, May 3 at 3:00 p.m.
The third seeded Bay Path Wildcats finished league play with an 11-5 record. Bay Path is led by the 2017 NECC Player of the Year, Lauren Vallee, who has proven herself to be offensive threat again in 2018, leading the league with a .504 batting average. Bay Path pitcher Felicia Gaillardetz has the best ERA in the league, at 2.50. The Wildcats will host No. 6 Mitchell in a single-elimination game on Tuesday, May 1 at 2:30 p.m. The Mariners finished league play with a 9-7 record, and will look to Stephanie Adams to make an impact at the plate, as she is leading her team with a .386 batting average. The winner will move on to double-elimination play, starting with the showdown with No. 2 Becker.
The second single-elimination game will pit No. 4 Newbury against No. 5 Elms. Both squads finished conference play with 10-6 records, with Newbury earning the four seed by virtue of the tiebreaker (Newbury had a win against the higher ranked Lesley). Newbury will look to sophomore Arianna Gooden to lead them offensively, as she is top ten in the league in both batting average (.442) and RBI (37). The Blazers are led offensively by senior Elizabeth Olszewski, who is tied for the league lead in home runs with seven. In the circle, Lisa Lusardi's 3.22 ERA is good for second in the league. The winner advances to the double-elimination round to battle No. 1 Lesley.
Lesley will host all games on Saturday and Sunday at Regis College in Weston, Mass.
Single Elimination Round - Tuesday, May 1, 2018
Game 1: #6 Mitchell at #3 Bay Path – 2:30 p.m.
Game 2: #5 Elms at #4 Newbury- 4:00 p.m.
Double Elimination Round- Thursday, May 3, 2018
Game 3: Winner of Game 1 @ #2 Becker- 3:00 p.m.
Game 4: Winner of Game 2 @ #1 Lesley – 6:00 p.m.
Championship - Saturday, May 5, 2018 (@Lesley)
Game 5: Loser of Game 3 vs. Loser of Game 4- 12:00 p.m.
Game 6: Winner of Game 3 vs. Winner of Game 4- 2:00 p.m.
Game 7: Winner of Game 5 vs. Loser of Game 6- 4:00 p.m.
Sunday, May 6, 2018 (@ Lesley)
Game 8: Winner of Game 6 vs. Winner of Game 7- 12:00 p.m.
Game 9: If Necessary- 2:00 p.m.