Box Score (PDF) | MAAC Championship Stats | Buffalo Stats | Video Recap
Buffalo, NY - No. 6 Manhattan claimed its first MAAC Softball Championship since 1999 with a 6-3 win over No. 2 Canisius at the Demske Sports Complex.
* Graduate student
Nicole Williams (Ansonia, CT / St. Joseph's) led the way with her third-straight complete game victory over the MAAC Softball Championship en route to being named the tournament's Most Outstanding Performer.
* The Jaspers will next advance to the 2021 NCAA Softball Championship and will next find out their opponent during the NCAA selection show, which will air tomorrow, May 16 on ESPN2 at 9 p.m.
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* Manhattan, which was hitless, through the first two innings, finally broke through in the third inning. Senior
Victoria Alonso (Stony Point, NY / North Rockland) led off with a double down the left-field line, before coming in to score on classmate
Emma Kindblom's (Wilbraham, MA / Wilbraham & Monson Academy) RBI double.
* After Canisius battled back to tie the game, junior
Annie Moore (Northridge, CA / El Camino Real) crushed a leadoff home run to start the fourth in reclaiming the lead for the Jaspers at 2-1.
* Manhattan added to its advantage with a single run in the fifth. Senior
Jessie Rising (Little Egg Harbor, NJ / Highlands) led off with a double to center field, before advancing to third on a Kindblom sacrifice. Sophomore
Lauren Rende (Ardsley, NY / Ardsley) followed with a double that bounced off the first base bag to plate Rising with the third Jasper run of the afternoon.
* In the top of the sixth, the Green & White scored a single run with some two-out magic. Sophomore
Gabriella Mazzotta (Somers, NY / Somers) reached via a two-out fielder's choice grounder, before stealing second. She then scored on an Alonso RBI single in stretching the lead out to 4-1.
* The Golden Griffins got two runs back in the bottom of the sixth, only to see the Jaspers get those two runs back in the top of the seventh with another two-out rally.
* Moore drew a two-out, four-pitch walk before sophomore
Marika Deemer (Perrysburg, OH / Perrysburg) crushed two-run home run to plate pinch-runner
Lily Fish (Manlius, NY / Fayetteville-Manlius) in stretch the lead back out to three at 6-3.
* In the bottom part of the frame, Williams promptly got the final three outs to ensure the best bus ride home from Western New York in program history.
* Alonso, who was named to the MAAC All-Tournament Team, went 2-for-3 with a double, run and RBI to highlight an eight-hit attack, including five of the extra-base variety.
* Joining Alonso on the MAAC All-Tournament Team was Deemer, Kindblom and Moore.
* Williams struck out three while yielding three runs on eight hits and three walks over 7.0 innings in improving to 13-2.
* Williams on the win:
* Head Coach
Tom Pardalis on the victory:
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