Colchester, Vt. (April 9) -- Assumption ran its winning streak to eight straight with a pair of victories over Saint Michael's on a blustery Monday afternoon in Northeast-10 Conference play. The Hounds took a 7-3 final in game one, followed by a 12-8 victory in the second game to complete the sweep. At 20-9 overall, Assumption is off to its best start in over a decade and now sits in a tie for first place in the Northeast-10 standings with 11 days remaining in the regular season.

In game one, Assumption built a 4-1 lead thru four innings and led by a 7-1 margin before the Hounds came away with the 7-3 victory. Leading the way on offense was junior Melissa Jalbert (Gardner, Mass./Gardner), who was 3-for-4 on the same day that she was named as the Northeast-10 Conference Player of the Week. Also posting multiple hits were freshman Jess DiPilato (Worcester, Mass./Holy Name) and senior Marissa Palumbo (Worcester, Mass./Holy Name), who finished the game with two hits each. Senior Jennifer Lowrey (Assonet, Mass./Apponequet) improved to 9-4 on the season with the win, allowing just seven hits with eight strikeouts. She won her fifth straight decision and was named as the Northeast-10 Pitcher of the Week for the fourth time in her career earlier today.

In the second game, the Hounds built a 7-2 lead early behind a five-hit, five-run second inning as Nikki Boris (Gardner, Mass./Gardner) keyed the offense with a two-RBI single to center. After Saint Michael's closed to within 7-5, Palumbo doubled thru the left side in the fourth to drive in three runs and put the game back out of reach. Palumbo and Boris each finished the game with three hits, along with five runs batted in from Palumbo and three from Boris.

Senior pitcher Chelsea Durso (Salem, N.H./Salem) picked up the victory for the Hounds to improve to 4-2 on the season. She went 4.1 innings, allowing just four earned runs with five strikeouts to earn the victory. Sophomore Jenn Lattal (Windsor, Conn./Windsor) threw 2.2 innings of relief as she allowed just one hit with five strikeouts on just 37 pitches.

With the sweep, Assumption has now won eight straight games, sitting at 20-9 overall and 13-3 in Northeast-10 play. With the losses, Saint Michael's falls to 5-19 overall and 3-13 in the league.

Assumption is back in action on Wednesday afternoon, hosting Southern Connecticut in a Northeast-10 Conference doubleheader beginning at 3 p.m. at Marois Field.