SPRINGFIELD, Massachusetts The rookie class shined brightly for the American International College softball team as the Yellow Jackets swept Northeast-10 Conference foe Pace University, 7-6 and 2-1, at Judy Groff Field on Tuesday, March 30.

FAST FACTS:
Scores: AIC 7, Pace 6; AIC 2, Pace 1
Records: AIC improves to 6-6 on the season and 5-3 in the NE10's Southwest Division; Pace drops to 2-10 on the season with a 2-6 NE10 Southwest mark.
Location: Judy Groff Field, Springfield, Massachusetts

PITCHING DECISIONS:
Game 1:
Win: Isabella Erti (1-1; 7.0 IP, 8 H, 6 R [4 ER], 1 BB, 7 K)
Loss: Mackenzie Garrick (1-4; 6.0 IP, 11 H, 7 R [4 ER], 2 BB, 1 K)
Save: None

Game 2:
Win: Riley Sullivan (2-0; 7.0 IP, 6 H, 1 R [0 ER], 2 BB, 5 K)
Loss: Anna Acevedo (0-4; 6.1 IP, 7 H, 2 R, 3 BB, 2 K)

KEY STATS:
Game 1:
AIC:
Olivia Ortega: 2-for-2, one home run, two RBI
Kacie Allison: 3-for-4, two runs
Alexis Jimenez: 1-for-3, one double, one walk, one run, one RBI
Victoria Andrade: 2-for-3, one run, one RBI

Pace:
Kaylani Miller: 2-for-3, one run, one RBI
Gwen Pederson: 2-for-3, one double, two runs
Arianna Guarracino: 1-for-3, one run, one RBI
Juliet Bernstein: 1-for-3, two RBI

Game 2:
AIC:
Jalia Santos: 1-for-3, one run
Kodi Gora: 2-for-3, one run
Abigail Wells: 2-for-2, one walk, one RBI

Pace:
Carolina Iturriaga: 2-for-2, one double, one RBI
Arianna Guarracino: 1-for-3, one run

HOW IT HAPPENED, GAME 1:

• Pace opened the scoring in the second frame thanks to a leadoff walk from Zoie Iverson; two batters later, Gwen Pederson drove a ball into center for a double, and Arianna Guarracino bounced an infield single to score Iverson. An RBI groundout played Pederson, and Juliet Bernstein drove a single through the right side to give the Setters a 3-0 advantage.
• The visiting side added to its lead in the following frame, as Emma Carruth beat out an infield single and took second on a passed ball; Kaylani Miller knocked a single through the right side and took second while Carruth was beating the throw home. Miller subsequently scored on a dropped fly ball in right to give the Setters a 5-0 edge.
• Rookie center fielder Abigail Wells walked to lead off the home half of the frame and senior Olivia Ortega made up for her error in the previous inning in a big way, crushing a two-run shot to left to cut the deficit back to three. Senior first baseman Kacie Allison kept it going with a single to center and took second when sophomore left fielder Alexis Jimenez walked. Allison subsequently scored when junior catcher Victoria Andrade drove a single through the left side and AIC was back in the game, down just 5-3.
• In the fifth, Allison and senior designated player Brianna Rivera stroked back-to-back singles before Jimenez doubled to bring in Allison and put AIC within one. Andrade laid a bunt down, and though the ball going up the third base line prevented the run from scoring, Andrade reached to load the bags. Freshman third baseman Kody Gora hit a shallow fly to right that was botched by the outfielder, allowing both Jimenez and Rivera to score to put AIC ahead, and Andrade would come in one batter later on an RBI groundout by sophomore second baseman Mackenzie Berman, putting AIC ahead 7-5 through five frames.
• Pace did not go without a fight, as Pederson singled to start the sixth, and took advantage of a passed ball to reach second. An error allowed her to get to third, and Bernstein bounced out to second while driving her in, but the Setters could only get to 7-6 in the inning.
• Freshman Isabella Erti came back out to finish what she started in the seventh and had little trouble in inducing three groundouts to seal the 7-6 victory.

HOW IT HAPPENED, GAME 2:

• AIC struck early in the nightcap, as senior shortstop Jalia Santos and Ortega both singled to start the bottom of the first and wisely took second on a deep flyout by Allison. They advanced again, with Santos scoring, as Rivera hit a sacrifice fly to get the score to 1-0.
• Pace threatened to get it back in the next half inning with a single, walk, and hit batter to load the bases, but a flyout ended the frame as Ortega fired home to Andrade, who in turn threw a laser to Santos at third to nail the runner and keep AIC's edge at 1-0.
• The Setters again threatened by loading the bases in the fourth, but freshman Riley Sullivan induced a shallow fly out to left to end the threat.
• In the sixth, Pace finally drew even, taking advantage of an error at third and an groundout to put a runner in scoring position that Carolina Iturriaga was able to double home, but once again Sullivan was able to finish the inning with a flyout to keep the score tied.
• AIC nearly regained the lead in the home half as Rivera reached on an error and Jimenez walked, but Andrade hit into an unlucky 4-3 lineout double play to keep the game even.
• Pace could not score in the seventh, going down in order thanks in no small part to a strong running catch in left by Jimenez, setting the table for home-team heroics. It did not take long, as Gora reached on a two-strike rope to right center, and was sacrificed over. Wells came to the dish and drove the ball into center, and Gora, who had taken off on contact, slid in under the tag to end the game in AIC's favor, 2-1.

THE KIDS ARE ALRIGHT:

• Freshmen pitchers earned the wins in both games for AIC, with Erti and Sullivan going seven strong in their respective starts.
• Gora was responsible for giving AIC the lead in both games, as her fly ball in the first game ultimately put AIC ahead 6-5 and then her hustle on the basepaths finished the second game, with that run being driven in by her fellow rookie, Wells.
• Wells leads the team with six walks on the campaign.

BUT SO ARE THE OLD GOATS:

• Ortega and Allison led the day for AIC with a trio of hits each, including Ortega's deep home run; along with Santos, seniors have hit all three home runs for AIC on the young season.
• Allison's 13 hits and eight RBI lead the team through 12 games, while Ortega leads the squad with four hits for extra bases.

NEXT UP:

• AIC will play the Le Moyne Dolphins in a four-game NE10 Southwest Division set over the weekend.
• The doubleheader in Syracuse, New York will feature two games on Friday, April 2 at 3:00 and 5:00 p.m., while the pair on Saturday, April 3 are slated for 12:00 p.m. and 2:00 p.m. starts.
• The series kicks off a dozen straight away from Judy Groff Field for AIC after starting with a dozen at home.