Ducks Win; Pioneers Fall
UTICA
The Utica College softball team dropped both games on the second day of the DOT Richardson Spring Games in Clermont, Florida. UC fell to University of Wisconsin- River Falls 8-0 in the first game, before losing to nationally ranked No. 22 William Paterson University 7-3 in the night cap.
The Pioneers drop to 1-3 overall. They have a short rest as they turn right around to take on Plymouth State (9 a.m.) and Keene State (11 a.m.) Tuesday morning.
Utica 0, UW-River Falls 8- Game One Final
Utica managed just on hit as River Falls' pitching duo of Abbie Morris and Brooke Lauritzen combined for six strikeouts and allowed just four base runners in the five inning game. Junior
Alysa Russell (Mechanicville, NY/Mechanicville) recorded Utica's only hit of the game.
Already holding a 2-0 lead, the Falcons exploded for five runs in the fourth inning to all but seal the victory. Katie Thompson and Abbie Morris each went 2-for-3, while Sarah Sorensen hit a grand slam in the fourth.
Sabrina Stransky (Miller Place, NY/Miller Place) had one strikeout and gave up six hits in 3.2 innings of work as she shouldered the loss.
Utica 3, #22 William Paterson 7- Game Two Final
William Paterson, whose mascot is also the Pioneers, scored three runs in both the second and fourth innings to seemingly put the game out of reach.
Utica battled back in the bottom of the fourth inning as
Samantha Husak (Jackson, MI/Grass Lake),
Stephanie Siriano (Sauquoit, NY/Vernon-Verona-Sherrill), and
Courtney Fitzgerald (Albany, NY/Colonie Central) all scored, however it was not enough as UC dropped its second game of the day.
Siriano went 2-for-4 at the plate in game two, while Husak,
Cassie Smith (Delmar, NY/Bethlehem Central),
Alaina Wickwire (Towanda, PA/Towanda),
Christy Traglia (Mohawk, NY/Mohawk),
Kimberly Beattie (Levitton, NY/Division Ave), and
Madison Williams (Prospect, NY/Holland Patent) each recorded one hit.
Alysa Russell (Mechanicville, NY/Mechanicville) extended her season-opening hitting streak to four games. She is now 6-for-10 on the young season.
Abby Monroe (Watertown, NY/General Brown) and
Brittany Meka (Averill Park, NY/Averill Park) combined for five strikeouts, with Monroe taking the loss.
STEVENS
The Stevens Institute of Technology softball team surrendered just one run over 14 innings Monday in 5-1 and 6-0 wins over the University of St. Joseph and Salem State University respectively.
The wins give Stevens its first 4-0 start in program history while St. Joseph and Salem State fell to 1-4 and 6-2 respectively.
Stevens 5, St. Joseph 1
After freshman
Olivia Gemma recorded scoreless innings in the first and second, the Ducks built their lead in the bottom of the inning. With senior
Noelle Mulligan on first and freshman
Lauren Shirley on second, Gemma helped her own cause with a single to left to put the Ducks up one.
St. Joseph's starter Colleen Ecsedy responded with a strikeout for the second out of the inning, but junior
Gavriella Risman-Jones refused to let her off the hook with a two-run triple to right to put Stevens up 3-0.
Gemma continued to dominate in the circle by retiring the side in order in the third and fourth, allowing the Ducks to add to their lead in the bottom of the fifth.
With junior
Sydney Spitz on third and sophomore
Kelly Klewicki on second, sophomore
Emily Sellitti singled up the middle to score both. St. Joseph's bounced-back with a run in the sixth, but it's as close as they would get the rest of the game as Gemma retired the side in order in the seventh to seal the win.
Klewicki and Mulligan each added two hits while Risman-Jones had two RBIs. Gemma struck out seven in her second win of the season.
Stevens 6, Salem State 0
After senior
Kayla Berardi retired the side in order in the first, sophomore
Jessica Rees got the Ducks on the board in the bottom of the inning with an RBI single to score Risman-Jones.
Sellitti added to the lead in the third with an RBI double before the Ducks scored two more in the fourth off a throwing error from the catcher and an RBI fielder's choice from Spitz.
Berardi made the lead stick by retiring the side in order in the fifth, allowing the Ducks to tack-on a pair of insurance runs off a Mulligan triple and a Risman-Jones RBI ground out. The runs were more than enough for Berardi who had no trouble closing out the win in the top of the seventh.
Berardi struck out five to earn her second win of the season while Rees added two hits and an RBI.