THE BASICS:

- Scores:
Game 1: Simmons - 2, MIT - 0
Game 2: MIT - 8, Simmons - 4

- Records: MIT (23-12), Simmons (22-11-1)

- Location: Cambridge, Mass. (Briggs Field)

- The Lead: The MIT softball team earned a non-conference doubleheader split against Simmons College on Wednesday afternoon at Briggs Field.

HOW IT HAPPENED – Game One

- The Sharks took a 1-0 lead in the third on a delayed steal and added another insurance run in the sixth on a wild pitch.
 
- MIT got the go-ahead run to the plate in the sixth as first-year Becca O'Connor (San Antonio, Texas) was hit to lead off the frame and sophomore Rylie Spiegel (Bradenton, Fla.) singled and later stole second but Maddie Castigliego retired the next two batters to keep the Engineers off the board.
 
- Sophomore Katia Pendowski (Elk Grove City, Ill.) led off the seventh with a single and a walk to first-year Kennedy Adkison (San Jose, Calif.) brought up the go-ahead run with one but Castigliego retired the next two batters to secure the win.
 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
 
- Castigliego earned the complete-game shutout as she allowed just two hits with one walk and four strikeouts.
 
- Senior Anya Chase (Wells, Maine) pitched four innings and allowed one run on four hits. She walked none and struck out eight. O'Connor pitched the last three innings giving up two hits and one runs with three Ks.

HOW IT HAPPENED – Game Two

- Junior Abby Shull (Cypress, Texas) gave MIT a 2-0 lead with a two-run double in the first. Senior Claire Wichman (Omaha, Neb.) singled to right to score Shull, and first-year Mackenzie Bivin (San Diego, Calif.) came around to score on an error on the play to make it 4-0.
 
- The Sharks got on the board in the fourth with a three-run homer to left from Shannon McMahon to make it a one-run game.
 
- A four-run fifth gave the Engineers some breathing room. Shull recorded a sacrifice fly and a two-run triple from Bivin gave MIT a 7-3 lead. Bivin then crossed home on a wild pitch to make the score 8-3.
 
- Sam Barr singled to right to plate a run and cut the Engineers' lead to four with two outs in the seventh, but senior Deborah Torres (Portage, Mich.) got the final out to secure the win.  
 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
 
- First-year Katie Katsuyama (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) got the start for MIT as she went the first 3.1 innings allowing three hits, three runs (two earned) with two walks, and a strikeout. Sophomore Zoë Kuhlken (San Diego, Calif.) got the win tossing 2.2 perfect innings with two Ks. Torres pitched the final innings and allowed one run on two hits.
 
- Sophomore Mackenzie Relihan (Naperville, Ill.) went 2-2 with two runs while Bivin went 2-3 with two runs and two RBI. Shull led MIT with three RBI in the game. Pendowski and Wichman also notched two hits each for MIT.

UP NEXT:

- MIT heads to Babson for a crucial NEWMAC contest on Friday, April 29. Game one is scheduled to begin at 3 p.m.
 
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