Final SB (3/23/25)
4
Winner Morgan St. MORGAN S 8-18
3
UMES UMES 2-22
Winner
Morgan St. MORGAN S
8-18
4
Final
3
UMES UMES
2-22
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R H E
Morgan St. MORGAN S 0 0 3 0 1 0 0 4 7 1
UMES UMES 1 0 0 1 0 1 0 3 3 3

W: V. Fletcher (3-9) L: Oneail, Kassidy (2-10)

Game Recap: Softball |

Hawks Battle to the End in Narrow 4-3 Loss to Bears in Series Finale

After dropping the first two games of the weekend series, UMES showed renewed fight in Sunday's finale against Morgan State.

UMES jumped out to an early lead and battled throughout in a tightly contested matchup that came down to the final inning, ultimately falling just short in a 4-3 defeat to the Bears. 

The Score
Morgan State (8-18, MEAC 4-2) - 4
Maryland Eastern Shore (2-22, MEAC 1-5) - 3

How it Happened 
The Maroon and Grey showed resilience but ultimately fell short in a tightly contested 4-3 loss to Morgan State in the series finale Sunday afternoon.

After dropping the first two games of the weekend, the Hawks came out aggressive early, taking a 1-0 lead in the first inning when junior Jaycee Holt singled, stole two bases, and scored on an error.

Morgan State responded with authority in the third, using a sacrifice fly and a two-run homer to surge ahead 3-1. 

The Hawks narrowed the deficit in the bottom of the fourth inning after freshman Clarke Calvin laced a double to center field to lead off the frame. Junior Ella Falcetti's productive groundout to shortstop advanced Calvin to third base. Calvin then showcased her baserunning awareness, racing home on a passed ball to cut Morgan State's lead to 3-2. 

The Bears extended their advantage to 4-2 in the fifth crossing the plate on a wild pitch.

The Hawks continued to battle, manufacturing runs with aggressive baserunning. Calvin's sacrifice fly in the sixth brought UMES within one at 4-3, but the Bears' pitching closed the door in the seventh to secure the victory.

Holt led the Hawks offense, finishing 2-for-3 with a single and a triple while scoring twice and stealing two bases. Calvin contributed significantly with a double, sacrifice fly and an RBI.

Despite the loss, UMES showed marked improvement after Saturday's doubleheader defeats, limiting the Bears to just seven hits while turning in several defensive highlights, including a double play in the sixth inning. Freshman Kassidy Oneail went the distance for UMES, tossing a complete game while allowing seven hits and striking out four Bears batters, walking just two in her 119-pitch effort.

By the Numbers 
  • Clarke Calvin concluded the series against the Morgan State Bears with two hits (one double), one RBI and a walk.
  • Jaycee Holt hit her first triple of the season this afternoon to lead off the bottom of the sixth inning. In addition, Holt swiped two bases, extending her season total to 17.
  • In the field, Holt and Falcetti led the Hawks in putouts with five and six, respectively. This was Holt's most since March 14 and Falcetti's second most this season.
  • Kassidy Oneail pitched her second complete game of the season. The freshman allowed seven hits and struck out four, one shy of her season high.

Quotes from Head Coach Aaron Robinson
Robinson's analysis on weekend MEAC home opener
"We got better than yesterday. We learned what we can do. We learned that if we all do our individual jobs and think about what we can do to affect a whole, we can have a great result. We're now playing seven inning softball, opening, knowing, and executing a full game and we're going in the right direction. We're gonna use next week (Wednesday), to continue to propel us and sharpen. 
I think we're in a great place. We made some changes, field wise, lineup wise, you know, who calls what, and I think we're where we want to be at this point to continue to push our mission and make the MEAC know who we are."

Kassidy Oneail's complete game
"I would say, throughout this weekend series with Savannah Smith and really getting out there and holding Morgan State to only four runs, we had a complete effort. We made a little bit of a different switch with who was calling pitches today. I think she (Kassidy Oneail) was just ready to go today. She wanted to go back in yesterday and leave her impact. She wanted to get the first game and she knows what her role is going to be for the team.
So I definitely think that without a doubt she was locked in and ready to go today, whatever she needed to do, she was going to get it done and she did it. I'm really excited. I think she's really getting comfortable with what we need from her. And as long as she has the support and the connection, she's going to do wonders."

Holt and Calvin's big day despite loss
"They're threats all the time, knowing that if we are not having the experience that we want that we're going to turn it around. We got to believe in ourselves. We got to adjust and we got to be open to the strategy, moving up and down the lineup, maybe taking a game off, whatever it takes to kind of get us snapped back into where we need to be.
You know, I told Clark in her first at-bat, 'You're the ROY. That's what you're shooting for - the Rookie of the Year.' Took her a while to process what I was saying, but once she made her double and got to second, she knew what it was. And I told her, you could be whoever you need to be, but the way you are on this field, the way you lock in, along with some other players, this can be your program for four years and just don't hesitate on that, don't look back and know that you're  in great hands."

Looking ahead with George Washington on the horizon
"Yeah, just the intent to get all seven. We always have a very unique experience with George Washington in the fall last year and then other years we played, going to DC we always have a different mindset or different feel to the game. It's a beautiful stadium, you really feel connected. I think our players do. And we're just going to assert our dominance. We're going to take some of the lessons we got today and the feelings that we got today and we're going to keep letting that propel us forward to make sure we have Hawk success and we keep building so we can continue to threaten people in the MEAC."

Next Up
UMES Softball will prepare for a non-conference matchup against George Washington on Wednesday, March 26 at 2 p.m.


Stay updated with UMES softball at UMESHawkSports.com and follow along on Twitter (@UMEShawksSB) and Instagram (@umeshawkssb).
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