VESTAL, N.Y. – Maine scored three runs in the first and America East Pitcher of the Year Erin Bogdanovich fired a complete game shutout to send the Black Bears to the conference’s championship game for the first time since 2004. The second-seeded Black Bears beat top-seeded Binghamton, 3-0, in the day’s first game of the 2016 America East Softball Championship Friday at Bearcats Sports Complex.
In game two, third-seeded Albany slugged a pair of grand slams en route to a 9-7 win over fourth-seeded Stony Brook as the Great Danes avoided elimination.
Rain caused the day’s schedule to be altered, pushing the day’s third game until Saturday morning. Binghamton will face Albany in an elimination game at 10 a.m. The winner will face Maine in the championship game at 1 p.m. The if necessary game would be played Sunday at noon.
Visit Championship Central for links to box scores and highlights from Wednesday’s game and watch live and live stats links for Thursday’s game. Stay tuned to AmericaEast.com and follow America East on Twitter for weather related updates.
Maine 3, Binghamton 0
Maine scored three runs in the first and Erin Bogdanovich hurled a six-hit shutout to lead the second-seeded Black Bears to a 3-0 shutout over top-seeded Binghamton in the winner’s bracket final of the 2016 America East Softball Championship Friday at Bearcats Sports Complex.
The Black Bears will appear in the championship game for the first time since 2004, the last time they won the conference crown.
Maine got its runs early, putting up three in the bottom of the first. Erika Leonard worked a lead-off walk before eventually moving around to third and scored on a passed bal. America East Rookie of the Year Alyssa Derrick plated two more in the inning after slapping a double the other way off the wall in right, scoring Janelle Bouchardand Felicia Lennon.
Binghamton’s best scoring chance came in the third as it loaded the bases with just one out. But, Bogdanovich, the America East Pitcher of the Year, won the battle with Bearcat first baseman Taylor Chaffee, snagging her line drive back up the middle to end the threat.
Bogdanovich, who fanned three, set down 13 of the final 15 hitters she faced to close out her fourth shutout the season.
Maine’s Meghan Royle, Binghamton’s Jessica Rutherford and Lisa Cadogan each had two hits in the game.
Albany 9, Stony Brook 7
Donna Conrad and Liz Snow both belted grand slams to push third-seeded Albany past fourth-seeded Stony Brook, 9-7, in the third elimination game of the 2016 America East Softball Championship Friday at Bearcats Sports Complex.
Stony Brook got on the board in the first and took a 1-0 lead on Irene Rivera’s run-scoring single. Conrad gave Albany a 4-1 lead in the third. After the first three Great Danes reached base, Conrad blasted a grand slam off the flag pole in right center field.
Diane Caruso delivered an RBI single to right to cut the deficit to 4-2, but Snow grew Albany’s lead to 8-2 with a grand slam to left in the fourth.
Caruso and Rivera each had their second RBI single of the day in the Stony Brook fourth to trim the Great Dane's lead to 8-4.
Each team added a single run in the fifth and Lexi Shue's two run double with out in the seven brought Stony Brook within two in the seventh, but Caitlin Cooper got the final two outs to seal the outcome.
Snow had three hits and drove in five for Albany while Rivera went 4-for-4 for the Seawolves.