NORTH EASTON, Mass. – The Sacred Heart University softball team allowed two hits and tallied three home runs on its way to a dominant 10-0 road victory in its series opener against Stonehill on Saturday afternoon. 

SHU 10, SC 0
Pitchers:
Liv Vadas (SHU) - (W, 5.0 innings pitched, 0 earned runs, 3 strikeouts, 3-5 record)
Sam Kowalski (SHU) - (2.0 innings pitched, 0 earned runs, 4 strikeouts)
Skylar Brandemarte (SC) - (L, 6.2 innings pitched, 3 earned runs, 3 strikeouts, 1-14 record) 
Kelly Mayette (SC) - (0.1 innings pitched, 0 earned runs) 

Top Performers:
Alyssa Gonzalez (SHU) – 2-4, 1 run, 1 RBI, 1 home run 
Jenna Mowad (SHU) – 1-5, 1 run, 3 RBI, 1 home run
Carly Koltko (SHU) – 1-3, 1 run, 1 RBI, 1 home run, 1 walk

Of Note:
After a scoreless first inning, the SHU bats came alive by scoring one run in each of the next three frames. Alyssa Gonzalez opened the contest's scoring by leading off the second with a solo homer to put the Pios up 1-0. The senior is up to a team-leading eight home runs this season and has 45 in her career. 

Carly Koltko was the next Pioneer to go yard, smashing her first long ball of the year in the top of the third to put SHU up 2-0. 

The Pios kept the ball in play to score their next run, as Emily Carroll led off the fourth inning with a double to right field. Back-to-back groundouts brought Carroll home, making it a 3-0 Sacred Heart advantage. 

After a scoreless fifth inning, Jenna Mowad blew the doors off the game with a three-run blast in the top of the sixth. Mowad smacked an opposite-field homer to right field to put the visitors up 6-0. Grace Saad and Cayla Nista scored on the home run. Mowad's bomb is her third this season, a new career high for the junior. 

Nicole Henke and Victoria LoPinto combined to put the finishing touches on the Pios' win with RBI singles in the top of the seventh. Henke tallied one RBI to make it a 7-0 game, while LoPinto had a bases-clearing single to set the final score at 10-0. 

In the circle, the Pios got outstanding performances from Liv Vadas and Sam Kowalski. Vadas started and picked up her third win of the season by going 5.0 innings without allowing a run. Kowalski pitched the final 2.0 innings and didn't allow a baserunner while striking out four runners. 

Up Next
The Pioneers are back in action tomorrow for a doubleheader against the Skyhawks beginning at noon at the Father Gartland Softball Field.