Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 PURCHASE, N.Y. – Senior Alyssa Taylor (Craik, Sask./Craik) was unstoppable at the plate and nearly unhittable in the circle as the righthander led the Manhattanville softball team to a doubleheader sweep of Mount St. Mary in non-conference action on a chilly Thursday afternoon at Manhattanville Field. The Valiants took the first game, 17-0 (5 inn.), before a 5-1 win in game two.
 
Taylor went 4 for 6 on the day with two homers, five runs scored and eight RBIs in the two games, while also giving up only two hits in 11 innings in the circle for Manhattanville (4-6). Freshman Brittany Deieso (Brewster, N.Y./Brewster) also hit .600 (3 for 5) with two extra-base hits and two RBIs to lead a Valiant attack that pounded out 25 hits in 12 innings.
 
Taylor single-handedly won the first game of the day both in the circle and at the plate, driving in seven runs and tossing four hitless innings in a 17-0 run-rule win.
 
Taylor was 3 for 3 with a homer, a career-high seven RBIs and three runs scored in the victory, with the seven runs batted in coming just one short of tying the program single-game record of eight set by Casey Killard '07 on April 26, 2005 versus Baruch.
 
The senior was not alone in having a good offensive game. Freshmen Dolores Diemicke (North Massapequa, N.Y./Plainedge) and Shelbee Damianos (Ojai, Calif./Nordhoff) both went 3 for 4 and scored three times, with Diemicke driving in two as well. Junior Alyssa Casino (Rye Brook, N.Y./Maria Regina) also recorded her first career homer as part of the team's 18-hit attack, as seven of the team's nine starters had at least two hits.
 
The Valiants jumped on Mount St. Mary starter Amanda Barrese (2-4) in the first inning, scoring six times on five hits. Sophomore Alyx Scapperotti (Harrison, N.Y./Harrison) led off the home season with a single to center and junior Rosaria Callara (Scarsdale, N.Y./Scarsdale) took advantage of a second life after a dropped foul ball kept her at the plate, lacing an RBI double to center. Diemicke and Taylor drove in runs with a single and a bases-loaded walk, respectively, before an MSMC error allowed the final two runs to score.
 
The runs came much more suddenly in the second inning, with a four-spot going up thanks to one swing from Taylor. After singles from Damianos and senior Kirsten Savage (Harrington Park, N.J./Old Tappan) sandwiched around a Diemicke double loaded the bases, Taylor launched a Barrese offering high off the tree in left-center for a grand slam that gave the home team a double-digit lead after two.
 
Six more runs came home in the third to remove any doubt about the outcome. Diemicke drove in one with an RBI single and Taylor followed with a single of her own that plated two more. Casino came up after that and blasted the first homer of her career over the fence in left-center to make the score 15-0, and Scapperotti added to the total by scoring Deieso with a single.
 
Meanwhile, Taylor (2-5) had no trouble with the Knights' offense, tossing four hitless innings and striking out four. Senior Emily Frawley (White Plains, N.Y./White Plains) came on in an attempt to close out a combined no-hitter, but Sabrina Gordek beat out an infield dribbler when down to her team's last strike to break up the no-no bid.
 
The second game of the day was much closer, but the Valiants scored the first five runs of the game and Taylor again help the Knights' offense in check to post a 5-1 game-two win.
 
Taylor again helped her own cause at the plate, going 1 for 3 with a homer and two runs scored. Savage had a good game at the dish with a 2-for-3 effort and a pair of runs scored, while Deieso also drove in a run for the home team.
 
Manhattanville scored three times in the second inning, taking advantage of two Mount St. Mary errors to grab the early lead. An infield grounder by Callara scored Taylor with the game's first run, and senior Shauna Mulkerin (Branchburg, N.J./Immaculata) worked a bases-loaded walk to double the lead before Callara scampered home on a wild pitch to make the score 3-0 after two.
 
The Valiants added two more runs after just three batters in the third inning. Taylor led off with her second homer of the day, and that was followed by back-to-back doubles by Savage and Deieso to give the home team a five-run edge.
 
Taylor made her lone mistake of the day to Danielle Soto leading off the fourth inning, as the third baseman sent a pitch over the left-field fence for her team's first hit of the game off the righthander. But that was it in terms of runs against Taylor (3-5), who scattered two hits and matched her career high with nine punchouts in seven innings.
 
Manhattanville is scheduled to begin Freedom Conference play on Saturday at noon against FDU-Florham, but rain in the forecast may alter those plans. Continue to check GoValiants.com and also follow Manhattanville Athletics on Facebook and Twitter for all the latest updates as they are announced.