WEST HARTFORD, Conn. – Maria Moccio drove in the winning run on an infield single in the bottom of the eighth inning, lifting UMass Lowell (28-19) to a 5-4 in over Binghamton (19-29) in an America East Tournament elimination game on Friday afternoon at the Hartford Softball Field. With the loss, the Bearcats finish in fourth place for the event after entering the week as the No. 6 seed.

Despite the final loss, Binghamton had an impressive run at the America East Tournament, finishing with a 2-2 record. The Bearcats bounced back from a 7-3 opening-round loss to Stony Brook to win a pair of elimination games. After knocking out host Hartford 5-3 on Wednesday, the Bearcats ousted two-time defending champion Albany 6-2 on Thursday.

"I'm just really proud of how we played as a true team this week," head coach Michelle Johnston said. "We were in it every pitch and learned how good we can be if we play like that. We will miss Allie and Kenz so much and thank them for everything they have done for our program."

Facing the America East regular-season champions on Friday, the Bearcats got off to a solid start. Junior catcher Sara Herskowitz broke a 1-1 tie with a two-run home run in the top of the third inning. Junior pitcher Rayn Gibson, meanwhile, allowed one run on three hits and struck out five batters through the first 5.0 innings.

In the bottom of the sixth inning, however, the River Hawks stormed back to take a 4-3 lead. Brianna West trimmed the deficit to 3-2 on a two-out double and scored one batter later on a two-run double by Marianne Sparacia.

Freshman pinch hitter Sophia Pappas tied the game at 4-4 when she led off the top of the seventh inning with a home run. It was her second pinch hit of the tournament, having doubled against Stony Brook on Wednesday.
Sophomore pitcher Chelsea Howard held UMass Lowell scoreless in the bottom of the seventh inning, sending the game to extra innings. Binghamton, however, was retired in order in the top of the eighth inning, setting the stage for the River Hawks to finish off the game.

Kaysee Talcik raised her record to 12-8 while Howard dropped to 3-4 with the loss.

Binghamton outhit UMass Lowell 10-7 for the game. Freshman second baseman Marissa Braito, freshman outfielder Chloe Morgan and sophomore designated player Hannah Lyons each went 2-for-4 for the game. Lyons drove in the Bearcats' first with a RBI double in the top of the first inning.

For the River Hawks Courtney Cashman, who leads the nation in batting (.515), homered in her first time at bat in the bottom of the first inning to tie the score at 1-1. She was issued intentional walks in her ensuing four times at bat.

Lyons led the Bearcats with five RBI and hit a team-best .438 (7-for-16) for the during the America East Tournament. Sophomore third baseman Sarah Benn hit .417 (5-for-12) and drove in four runs. Herskowitz, meanwhile, went 5-for-14, scored a team-best five runs and drilled her two-run homer against UMass Lowell.

On the mound, freshman pitcher Morgan Bienkowski went 2-0 this week, recording a pair of complete-game victories. She struck out 12 batters and finished with a 2.50 ERA.

As a team, the Bearcats hit .325 during the America East Tournament and held their opponents to a .260 batting average.

Braito finished the season with a team-best .319 batting average followed by Benn, who hit .315. Sophomore shortstop Makayla Alvarez clubbed a team-best nine home runs followed by Herskowitz, who drilled seven home runs and recorded a team-high 36 RBI.

Binghamton loses just two players to graduation (Allison Pritchard and Makenzie Goluba) and returns its entire starting lineup from this past week at the America East Tournament. All three of the Bearcats' all-conference selections (Benn, Braito and Alvarez) were underclassmen this year.

UPDATE ON SATURDAY, MAY 11: Bienkowski and Lyons were named to their America East All-Tourament Team for the first time in their career. Bienkowski is the first Binghamton freshman to be chosen since Sydney Harbaugh in 2013.