LAKEWOOD, NJ-An afternoon that started so splendidly with a wonderful Senior Day celebration and a five-inning, 11-0 trouncing of visiting Chestnut Hill College in Game One nearly turned memorable for all the wrong reasons in the nightcap. Trailing the 2-34 Griffins all game, the Georgian Court University offense finally turned up the volume with their bats by scoring four runs in the bottom of the seventh inning to squeak out the 4-3 victory in the Lions' final regular season home game of the season.

CF Jess Comiskey, celebrating her birthday, brought the biggest gift of the day as she drove home 1B Courtney Cuevas with the winning tally on a screaming single to turn panic time into party time at GCU.


Nicole Hitchings (Fr.-Warminster, PA), after entering the contest as a defensive replacement in the fourth inning, broke a scoreless tie in the top of the fifth with Chestnut Hill's first home run as a TEAM this season, a two run shot. The Griffins scored what seemed to be an insurance run in the top of the seventh on a Janean Ciancia (Jr.-Trainer, PA) sacrifice fly to center.


The Lions (31-15, 17-7 CACC) proceeded to play musical chairs on the the basepaths. Unfortunately for Chestnut Hill, the music never seemed to stop as GCU plated four runs on three hits, an error and one costly wild pitch to steal the victory.

Brooke Hull, the Lions' starting pitcher in Game Two, led off the final frame with a blistering double to the left-centerfield fence. SS Kelsey Cutler then reached on a fielding error by Griffins' pitcher and local product, Veronica Wilenta (Fr.-Brick, NJ/Brick Township), to put runners on first and third. Two of the afternoon's celebrated seniors (injured pitcher, Amanda LaFrance, being the other) took care of business in the next two at-bats as C Donnie Brossoie rapped a RBI double and LF Chelsea Long lofted a sacrifice fly to make the score 3-2.

With Brossoie on third, PH Lyndsey PeQueen worked a walk before being pinch-ran for by Cuevas. Wilenta then proceeded to uncork a wild pitch over the head of Ciancia behind the dish. Brossoie broke for home immediately to score the tying run. During the commotion at home, Cuevas alertly advanced all the way to third, setting the table for Comiskey.

Diana Sansevera earned the victory (her second of the afternoon) for Georgian Court after getting the final two outs of the seventh inning in relief of Hull.

Wilencia (1-15) pitched six full innings of one-hit ball before the seventh, allowing three earned runs on four hits and four walks overall.

Game One was sans drama as the Lions scored their 11 runs on 10 hits and four walks in a brisk 1:02. Long carried the big stick in the game as she collected the first two-dinger game of her career with a two-run shot in the first and a three-run opposite field bomb in the fourth. Chelsea finished the twin-bill with six RBI.

Hull tied Cutler for the team-lead with her ninth home run of the year, a three-run shot, in the first inning. The GCU slugger now leads the CACC with 56 RBI.

Sansevera (19-7) breezed to the complete-game victory, yielding a lone infield single and no walks while striking out eight.


Cassie Benson (Fr.-Rosamond, CA) (1-15) suffered the defeat (4.0 IP, 11 R, 8 ER, 10 H, 4 BB, 1 K) for the Griffins (2-35, 2-22 CACC).

Georgian Court will next play on Saturday when they travel to Bronxville, NY for a doubleheader vs. newest conference foe, Concordia College (28-13, 15-7 CACC).