Press Release

JENSEN HELPS PURPLE KNIGHTS SPLIT WITH MERRIMACK FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                      FOR MORE INFORMATION April 19, 2004                                                                            Contact: Seth Cole                                                                                                 Phone: (802) 654-2537 COLCHESTER, Vt. – Sophomore Raina Jensen (Portland, Maine/Deering) fired a complete-game shutout in the nightcap as Saint Michael’s College earned a split with Merrimack College in a Northeast-10 Conference softball doubleheader on Monday at Doc Jacobs Field. The Warriors won the opener, 2-0, while the Purple Knights took game two, 2-0. Merrimack falls to 17-11 overall and 9-5 in NE-10 play, while Saint Michael’s remains at .500 at 14-14 overall, 8-10 in league action. Jensen allowed just four singles and didn’t walk a batter in improving to 4-2 on the season. She fanned three and thwarted Merrimack’s hopes of a comeback by retiring the final 13 batters to record her second shutout of the season. Saint Michael’s managed just four hits in the nightcap, but scored the only runs it would need in the bottom of the first, as freshman Casey Brooks (Colchester, Vt./Colchester) led off with a single and, with two outs, junior Noelle Gill (Deep River, Conn./Mercy) blasted a two-run homer to left-center, her team-leading fifth of the season. Gill added a single in the win, while junior Whitney Christmas (Brattleboro, Vt./Brattleboro Union) and sophomore Meagan Newland (E. Burke, Vt./Lyndon Institute) also singled. Freshman Clarissa Lewis (Peabody, Mass.) singled twice to lead the Merrimack attack, while sophomore Lauren Otto (No. Andover, Mass.) suffered the loss despite pitching a complete game. In game one, senior Meghan Condon (Middleboro, Mass.) held the Purple Knights hitless for the first 4.1 innings before settling on a complete-game four-hitter. The Warriors tallied single runs in the fifth and sixth innings, as Lewis’ second single of the contest plated the first run, and junior Kristen Valada (Salem, N.H.) scored the second run following her second single. Freshman Meggan Roberge (Sheldon Springs, Vt./Missisquoi Valley Union) was the hard-luck loser for Saint Michael’s, as she pitched her 12th complete game of the season, allowing just one earned run while walking two and striking out seven. She also singled twice to lead the offense, while Gill reached base all three times with a single and two walks. The Purple Knights return to action on Wednesday, as they visit Franklin Pierce College in an NE-10 twinbill starting at 3:30 p.m. Saint Michael’s returns home on Thursday to host league-leading Le Moyne College in a 3 p.m. doubleheader.       ###PURPLEKNIGHTS###

For more information please contact the SMC Sports Information Office at (802) 654-2537
Last Revised: October 25, 2002