Box Score MYRTLE BEACH, SC - The Utica University softball team took a season-opening win over the University of Maine Presque Isle 8-0 in the opening game of the Fastpitch Dreams Spring Classic. The win was the first of head coach Rinae Olsen's Pioneer career. The team's second game against Plattsburgh State was rained out.
 
The Pioneers wasted no time getting things going as they took a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning. After taking advantage of an error, Kylie Murray (Eastchester, NY/Eastchester) tripled to bring home Emily Joss (South Glens Falls, NY/South Glens Falls) for the first run of the game. Maddie Zulager (Moorpark, CA/Moorpark) then flew out to center field to bring home Murray on the sacrifice fly to increase the Utica lead to 2-0. 
 
Utica kept its bats going as Abbigayle Finch (New Paltz, NY/New Paltz) reached first on an error which let Lauren Paul (Guilderland, NY/Guilderland) score to make it a 3-0 Utica lead. Abigail Sacks (Colonie, NY/Colonie) doubled to left field to bring home Murray and Joss to make it a 5-0 Pioneer advantage. Paul then continued the rally with a single to right field to score Sacks and give Utica a 6-0 edge after three innings of play.
 
The score remained the same until the bottom of the sixth when Utica tacked on two more runs for an 8-0 lead. Emily Joss (South Glens Falls, NY/South Glens Falls) continued to get on base and doubled to right center to bring home Julia Phelps (Waterford, NY/Shenendehowa High School). Kylie Murray (Eastchester, NY/Eastchester) then singled and Joss scored her game-leading third run of the game.
 
Jordyn Conte (Newport, NY/West Canada Valley High School) was fantastic on the mound picking up the win after five innings of work with seven strikeouts while allowing just four hits and one walk. Maggie Habernig (Kingston, NY/Kingston) pitched a clean inning allowing no hits in her collegiate debut. The two combined to allow just four hits in six innings of work.
 
The tablesetters for the Pioneers had a great game as Emily Joss (South Glens Falls, NY/South Glens Falls) and Kylie Murray (Eastchester, NY/Eastchester) each collected three hits in four at bats while combining for five runs with three runs batted in. Joss was wreaking havoc on the base paths with a career-high four steals in four attempts.
 
Lauren Paul (Guilderland, NY/Guilderland) added two hits with an RBI while Sacks recorded one hit with two RBIs.
 
Utica (1-0, 0-0 Empire 8) will continue its Fastpitch Dreams Spring Classic on Monday against Franciscan University and Randolph College in back-to-back games beginning at 1 p.m.