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Great Northeast Athletic Conference

USJ Takes Game 1 over JWU In Championship Series

Photo Credit: Jon Burke
Photo Credit: Jon Burke
May 10, 2025
Photos Video Box Score

Recap/Photo Courtesy of the University of Saint Joseph (Conn.) Athletic Communications

PROVIDENCE, R.I. - The South Division third-seeded University of Saint Joseph (USJ) softball team opened the 2025 Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Championship Series with a strong performance, defeating South Division top-seeded Johnson & Wales University (JWU), 5-2, in Game One Saturday afternoon at the Scotts Miracle-Gro Athletic Complex.

With the win, the Blue Jays (22-17) move within one victory of clinching the 2025 GNAC Championship. They'll have the opportunity to do so in Game Two of the best-of-three series against the Wildcats (27-15), which is scheduled for noon on Sunday, May 11.

HOW IT HAPPENED

  • After two scoreless innings to start the game, JWU struck first in the bottom of the third, plating two runs to take a 2-0 lead.
  • USJ answered in the top of the fourth as freshman outfielder Lorynes Suriel (Lynn, Mass.) delivered an RBI single to center field to make it 2-1.
  • Junior catcher Allison Conger (Plainfield, Conn.) followed with a two-run single down the left-field line to put the Blue Jays ahead, 3-2.
  • The run parade continued in the top of the fifth as senior shortstop Jenna Zup (Berlin, Conn.) and junior outfielder Kaitlyn Ouellette (Wolcott, Conn.) launched back-to-back solo home runs to right field, extending the lead to 5-2.
  • Junior starting pitcher Paige Fekete (Watertown, Conn.) stifled the JWU bats over the next two innings, keeping the score steady heading into the seventh.
  • JWU loaded the bases in the bottom of the seventh, bringing the winning run to the plate, but senior Alyssa Roberts (Naugatuck, Conn.) struck out the final batter to shut the door and preserve the win.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

  • Zup and Roberts paced the team with two hits each.
  • Zup and Ouellette both hit their first home runs of the season.
  • Conger led the team with two RBIs.
  • Fekete got the start inside the circle, picking up the win (8-6) after allowing two unearned runs off five hits in 6.1 innings of work.
  • Roberts notched her third save in as many games, striking out one and giving up just one hit over 0.2 innings in relief.

UP NEXT

The Blue Jays return to action on Sunday, May 11, for Game Two of the GNAC Championship Series. First pitch against Johnson & Wales is scheduled for noon at the Scotts Miracle-Gro Athletic Complex in Providence, R.I.