NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. – The LIU softball team traveled this weekend to take on the Merrimack College Warriors in a three-game series, starting with game one on Saturday morning that saw the Sharks fall 7-5 despite a late scoring push to comeback.
 
SHARK BITES

• It was a battle of the pitchers, with the score remaining nil-nil until the bottom of the fifth when Merrimack scored five. LIU responded though, scoring five of their own in the top of the sixth to knot the game up, but a two-run bottom of the seventh for the Warriors gave them the edge to take game one 7-5.
• In the bottom of the fifth, the Warriors got on board with their five runs taken from one hit.
• To start the scoring off for the Sharks, Jazmine Cuffie, who pinch hit for Angelina Reno and then walked to get on base, was scored by Kiana Cisneros, who was also walked and drove in the forced run. Alyssa Polemeni reached on a fielder's choice and Ryleigh Bermea, after being hit by a pitch, was driven in for Sharks run number two.
• Ciara Granado scored when Maya Avila got on base with a single and the Sharks were only trailing 5-3. It was Camryn Lyman though who grabbed two RBI's and pushed the tying runs across the plate. Maya Avila and Emily Money were the two players across the plate.
• The game was knotted 5-5 until in the bottom of the seventh, Merrimack rallied and grabbed two runs off of one hit.
• Elena Valenzuela (4-7) got the loss on the mound for the Sharks.
• The Sharks face off with the Warriors again in a double header tomorrow, Sunday, April 10 starting at 11 a.m.