VIERA WEST, Fla. - The Saint Michael's College softball team opened its season with losses to 2025 NCAA Tournament qualifiers D'Youville University, 5-4, and Saint Thomas Aquinas College, 8-0 in six innings, on Friday in the Space Coast Spring Games at the United States Specialty Sports Association (USSSA) Space Coast Complex.
 
DOUBLEHEADER FACTS

• First-years Shaylee Branon (Troy, N.H./Monadnock Regional), Mady Bull (Milford, Conn./Jonathan Law) Ciara Flaherty (Newington, Conn./East Catholic) and Madi Liimatainen (Turners Falls, Mass./Turners Falls) all picked up their first college hits during the day.

GAME 1
RECORDS

• Saint Michael's (0-1), D'Youville (10-6)

SAINT MICHAEL'S LEADERS

• Branon, 2-for-3
• Bull, 2-for-4, R, RBI, 3B
• Flaherty, 1-for-2, RBI, SF
• Senior CJ Davidson (Canyon Lake, Calif./Vista Murrieta), 1-for-3, R, RBI, 2B, SAC; 6.2 IP, 13 H, 5 R, 4 ER, 1 BB, 1 K
• Junior Brynlyn Owens (Limon, Colo./Limon), 1-for-2, R, SAC
• Sophomore Maddy Booska (Burlington, Vt./Colchester), 1-for-4, R, RBI, 2B

OPPONENT LEADERS

• Sophomore Leah Batterson, 2-for-4, 2 R, RBI
• Sophomore Mikayla Hussar, 2-for-4, 2 RBI, 3B
• Sophomore Annie Jorgenson, 3-for-4
• Junior Hailee Jenkins, 0.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K in relief, win

THE ACTION

• The homestanding Saints led 3-0 by the second inning after Hussar tripled home a run in the first and senior Shannon Howes tripled in a pair in the second.
• Booska socked an RBI double in the sixth before scoring on first-year Ciara Flaherty's (Newington, Conn./East Catholic) sac fly.
• Hussar's RBI single pushed the lead to 4-2 in the sixth, but the Purple Knights tied the game in their final at bat in the seventh, as Bull ripped an RBI tripled and scored on Davidson's sac fly.
• In the home half, Batterson's two-out RBI infield single scored the winning run.

GAME 2
RECORDS

• Saint Michael's (0-2), Saint Thomas Aquinas (3-6)

SAINT MICHAEL'S LEADERS

• Davidson, 1-for-2
• Liimatainen, 1-for-2
• Branon, 1-for-2
• Sophomore Maddy Eaton (Seabrook, N.H./Winnacunnet), 1.2 IP, 5 H, 5 R, 4 ER, 3 BB, 0 K, loss
• First-year Alexis Wilson (Barnstead, N.H./Prospect Mountain), 4.1 IP, 8 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 1 K in relief

OPPONENT LEADERS

• Senior Elyse Marcano, 2-for-3
• Senior Trinadey Santiago, 4-for-4, 2 R, 4 RBI, 2B, HR
• Junior Alyssa Haberstroh, 2-for-2, R, RBI, BB, 2B
• Sophomore Lauren Falk, 6 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K

THE ACTION

• The Spartans scored four runs on four hits in the top of the first inning, keyed by Santiago's two-run single.
• Santiago added an RBI double in the second, and her leadoff homer accounted for the final run in the sixth.
• In between, the Purple Knights' greatest sustained threat came when Liimatainen and Branon began the fifth with consecutive singles, but a sacrifice and double play ended the frame.

NEXT SAINT MICHAEL'S GAME

• Saturday against Purdue University Northwest (2:30 p.m.) and Felician University (7 p.m.) in Viera West, Fla., during the Space Coast Spring Games.