VESTAL, N.Y. – The top seeds in the 2022 America East Softball Championship field will decide the league title. Top-seeded UMBC and second-seeded UAlbany will square off for the crown after each advanced to the championship round with wins on day three of the tournament on Friday.
In the first game of the day on Friday, Karly Keating’s solo home run provided the only scoring in UMBC’s 1-0 over UAlbany. Third-seeded UMass Lowell eliminated fourth-seeded Binghamton with a 3-0 victory in game two. The Great Danes bounced back in game three and knocked out the River Hawks with a 3-0 win in game three.
Championship Saturday begins with UMBC and UAlbany at 11 a.m. with the if necessary game to follow if needed. The matchup, which features the two teams who have combined to win the last four league titles, will air on ESPN+.
2022 #AESB Championship Day 3 Recap
UMBC 1, UAlbany 0
- Karly Keating’s solo home run in the sixth inning was the lone scoring play of the game as top-seeded UMBC (30-10) beat second-seeded UAlbany, 1-0, in the winner’s bracket final of the tournament.
- Keating’s blast, which came on the first pitch of the bottom of the sixth, sailed over the left field fence for her sixth of the season.
- Pitching was the story for most of the day with both team’s pitchers putting up zeroes.
- Kya Matter, the AE Rookie of the Year, fired five shutout frames, fanning nine, for UMBC before Pitcher of the Year Courtney Coppersmith came in out of the bullpen to earn the win. She threw two perfect frames with five Ks.
- UAlbany’s Wendy Hammond allowed just the one run in five-plus innings of work, holding UMBC to only three hits.
UMass Lowell 3, Binghamton 0
- Third-seeded UMass Lowell plated three runs in its half of the third and Rylie White spun a gem in the circle as the River Hawks eliminated fourth-seeded Binghamton (22-23) in game two.
- In the third, the River Hawks put together four-straight two out hits to plate three runs.
- With two outs, Maria Moccio singled and scored along with Olivia Labbe on Elizabeth Frederick’s double. Tori Mueller brought Frederick with a double of her own to make it 3-0.
- White did the rest in the circle, hurling a five-hit shutout with nine strikeouts and just one walk.
UAlbany 5, UMass Lowell 3
- Second-seeded UAlbany (25-15) jumped out to a 5-0 lead and held off a comeback effort from third-seeded UMass Lowell.
- Katie Falotico, a first-team All-Conference standout, went 2-for-3 and bookend the scoring with RBI hits in the first and fifth innings.
- Maddie Patrella delivered a two-run homer in the fourth.
- UMass Lowell (28-20) scored three times in the sixth to get close but stranded the bases loaded.
- Elizabeth Frederick led UML with two hits.
- Maranda Jimenez threw four shutout innings to earn the win while Wendy Hammond earned the save.
Stay up-to-date on the tournament by visiting Championship Central for streaming and live stats links. After the game, visit for box scores and recaps in addition to team information, tournament history and more.
Follow @AmericaEast and @AEGameday on Twitter to get the real-time championship updates. Use the #AEChamps and #AESB hashtags to join the conversation.
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