Lauren Merrill pitched a four-hit shutout as the University of Southern Maine beat Bowdoin 1-0 in the opener of a softball doubleheader Tuesday at Gorham.

The Polar Bears (18-14) bounced back for a 5-2 in the second game.

Brook Kulis scored on a passed ball in the fifth inning to give USM (11-15) the game one win. Maddie Current took the loss, pitching three innings of relief for Bowdoin.

Angelina Mayers hit a solo home run, Chloe Garcia had a pair of doubles and Kyla Gray notched a two-run double in the second game to help the Polar Bears get the split. Abby Allen struck out three in four innings of relief to pick up the win.

BASEBALL

SOUTHERN MAINE 13, PLYMOUTH STATE 2: Brogan Searle-Belanger hit a three-run home run, and Arlo Pike and Cam Seymour each had a solo home run as the Huskies (10-15) rolled past the Panthers (7-14) at Plymouth, New Hampshire.

Anthony Poole chipped in with a hit and three RBI. Lucas Francis pitched four innings in relief, giving up three hits and striking out two for the win.

MEN’S LACROSSE

U. OF NEW ENGLAND 13, GORDON 6: Sam McGregor scored five goals and Alex Thoms made 13 saves as the Nor’easters (8-8, 2-5 CCC) downed the Fighting Scots (3-10, 0-6) at Biddeford.

Ryan Hazard chipped in with two goals. Joe O’Keefe added a goal and an assist.

ST. JOSEPH’S 20, ANNA MARIA 8: Max Lacy scored three goals in the second quarter and finished with six as the Monks (8-7, 6-2 GNAC) coasted by the Amcats (2-13, 1-7) in Standish.

Tiger Hopkins had two goals and eight assists for St. Joseph’s and Xavier Michaud had two goals and two assists. Brannon Gilbert and Liam Greene combined for 12 saves.

Hank Gittines led Anna Maria with three goals. Nicholas Lopez made 18 saves.

BOWDOIN 26, EMERSON 9: Patrick Fitzgerald led the way with five goals and Will Byrne added four and two assists, lifting the Polar Bears (11-3) over the Lions (5-11) in Brunswick.

Jason Lach had four goals for Bowdoin. Oliver Bernstein, Avery Kirby and Liam Tasker all had two goals and an assist. Robert Hobbs made six saves.

Jack Burns led Emerson with four goals. Connor Nydegger stopped 12 shots.

COLBY 26, THOMAS 0: Jack Hanson, Henry Popko and Max Solmssen each scored three goals as the Mules (3-9) cruised past the Terriers (3-6) in Waterville.

Nick Hassan had two goals and five assists and Cade Nagahama added two goals and two assists. Isaac Kante and Chris Maichin both scored twice and nine Mules each had one goal.

WOMEN’S LACROSSE

PLYMOUTH STATE 13, SOUTHERN MAINE 12: Julia Donovan’s third goal broke a 10-10 tie early in the fourth, powering the Panthers (8-5, 3-0 LEC) to a victory over the Huskies (7-7, 3-1) in Plymouth, New Hampshire.

Donovan and Olivia Croke each had three goals and two assists for Plymouth State. Maddie Hunt added two goals and one assist and Margie Black turned aside nine shots.

Julia McKenna tallied five goals for USM. Cierra Hill logged four goals and an assist and Cece Racine made 10 saves.

U. OF NEW ENGLAND 19, GORDON 2: Morgan White had six goals and an assist and Abby McHallam chipped in four goals as the Nor’easters (10-5, 4-3 CCC) dropped the Fighting Scots (7-7, 2-4) in Biddeford.

Mikayla Lecci and Kaitlyn Mini scored for Gordon.

MEN’S BASKETBALL

PURDUE: National player of the year Zach Edey of Purdue has declared for the NBA, but will keep open the option of returning to school next season.

The 7-foot-4 center, who led Purdue to a Big Ten regular-season title last season by averaging 22.3 points, 12.9 rebounds, 2.1 blocks and 1.5 assists per game, has one season of college eligibility remaining. The Boilermakers also became the second No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament to lose to a No. 16 seed last month.

“My basketball career has been unorthodox to say the least, but I wouldn’t change a thing about it,” Edey wrote on Twitter. “From ranked 437 in my recruiting class to national player of the year, I can’t put into words what Purdue University, my teammates, my coaches and our fans mean to me. Though we fell short of our ultimate goal this season, I loved every minute of it.”

He added: “I will evaluate my future after going through the process and look forward to what’s next.”

Edey became the first player from Purdue to win the national player of the year award since Glenn Robinson in 1994. Robinson was the No. 1 overall pick that season.