Box Score WESTFIELD, Mass. – After digging themselves into an early 4-0 hole, the Westfield State softball team scored nine unanswered runs, defeating Smith College, 9-5, in a nonconference game Monday afternoon at Alumni Field.

Junior Allison Snyder (Succasunna, N.J./Roxbury) led off the first inning with a triple to center field and scored on Brittney Blokker (Seattle, Wash./Ballard)'s double to left center. The Pioneers added two more in the second when Lydia DeAngelo (Portsmouth, R.I./Moses Brown School)'s double to ledt scored senior Tori Brown (New Market, Md./Linganore) and Giordano crossed home plate on a fielders choice.

Smith taked on one more run in the third inning when Caroline Kushner (Cheshire, Conn./Cheshire) scored on a single from first-year Alyssa Pioggia (East Longmeadow, Mass./East Longmeadow). 
 
Trailing 4-1 entering the bottom of the fourth inning, the Owls scored four runs in the frame, including a game-tying three-run home run by freshman left fielder Bri Tortora. Tortora finished 3-for-5 on the day, including her first collegiate home run.
 
Westfield added four more runs in the sixth, batting around in the inning with the help of two Smith errors and a wild pitch. Sullivan, Ezold, and Dunbar each had RBI singles in the inning before Rowan Turner (Prairie Village, Kan./Shawnee Mission East) came in to pitch in relief and induced a pop out with the bases loaded to end the inning.

The Pioneers were unable to mount a comeback but added a run in the seventh.
 
Sophomore Michaela LeBlanc earned her first collegiate win for the Owls, scattering six hits and allowing one run in four innings of relief. Freshman Saxon Bresnahan started in the circle for Westfield, surrendering four runs, three earned, on six hits in three innings.
 
Junior Natalie Burchat (Shrewsbury, Mass./Shrewsbury) (9-7) took the loss for the Pioneers, giving up nine runs, five earned, on 15 hits in 5 2/3 innings.
 
Blokker and Pioggia led Smith with two hits and an RBI each.
 
Smith College finishes its season with a 13-20 overall record. 

(Portions of this recap courtesy to Westfield State)