Bombers, Cardinals and Soaring Eagles Win Twice; Ducks and Saxons Split

4/19/2015 6:25:00 PM

ALFRED v STEVENS
The Alfred University and Stevens Institute of Technology softball teams split an Empire 8 Conference doubleheader at Stevens Sunday afternoon.
 
Stevens handed No. 23 Alfred University its first Empire 8 Conference loss of the season with a 4-2 win on senior day.  Alfred rebounded to take game two 7-2 and remain in first place in the E8 standings. 
 
Stevens 4, Alfred 2
Senior pitcher Kayla Berardi retired the side in order in the first before the Ducks got on the board in their half of the inning. With junior Gavriella Risman-Jones on second after a walk and a sacrifice bunt from junior Sydney Spitz, senior Jamie DeGennaro ripped a single to left center to put Stevens up 1-0.
 
Berardi held the lead with hitless innings in the second, third and fourth before Stevens added to the lead in the bottom of the fourth. With sophomore Emily Sellitti on second after a one out double, senior Noelle Mulligan ripped a double down the left field line to put Stevens up 2-0.
 
Alfred finally broke through with two in the fifth, but the Ducks answered in the bottom of the inning with RBI singles from Spitz and Sellitti.
 
The Saxons rallied again in the seventh by loading the bases with no one out, but Berardi worked out of the jam with two strikeouts and a fly out to end the game.
 
Risman-Jones scored twice and added two hits while Sellitti had two hits, a run and an RBI. Berardi struck out four to earn her 11^th win of the season.

Alfred 7, Stevens 2
AU sophomore third baseman Liz Thompson (Horseheads, NY/Horseheads) blasted a pair of solo homeruns in the second game, the second of which put Alfred ahead for good, at 3-2. Senior first baseman-pitcher Alison Wickwire (Towanda, PA/Towanda) hit a solo shot in the fourth, which gave her 12 on the year, a new school single-season record.
 
The Saxons led 1-0 after Thompson's homer in the first. Stevens tied the game with a run in the third before Wickwire's homerun restored the lead for AU in the fourth. Stevens again tied the game with a run in the bottom of the frame before AU pulled away with four in the sixth, then closed out the scoring with a run in the seventh.
 
Alfred freshman pitcher Kerri Keeler (Jamesville, NY/Jamesville-Dewitt) improved to 8-0 on the season. Keeler scattered six hits, allowing two earned runs and striking out two to earn the complete-game win.
 
Thompson finished 3-for-4 with three runs scored and three RBIs. Junior second baseman  Dana Torchia (Pompton Plains, NJ/Pequannock Twp.) hit  double and scored a run; junior catcher Jasmine Picini (Alexandria, VA/West Potomac) and sophomore Sophia Chiavatti (Austin, CA/Foothills) each drove in a run; and junior shortstop Nicole Maher (Newark, DE/Caravel Academy) and freshman Haley Powers (Newark, DE/St. Georges Tech) each scored a run.


ITHACA v NAZARETH
The Ithaca College softball team earned its fourth conference sweep of the season on Sunday with back-to-back wins over Nazareth at Kostrinsky Field on Senior Day. The Bombers defeated the Golden Flyers by a score of 9-2 in game one, before completing the sweep with an 11-0 win in five innings. The wins move Ithaca's overall record to 15-11, including a mark of 9-3 in the Empire 8.

Game One: Ithaca – 9, Nazareth – 2
Junior Laura Quicker picked up the complete game victory in game one, improving her overall record to 8-7. She allowed just one earned run on seven hits, and recorded three strikeouts over 7.0 innings.

Senior Francesca Busa led the Bombers with three hits in four at-bats. Junior Casey Gavin went 2-for-4 with a triple and three RBI. Classmate Kelly Robichaud rounded out the multi-hit performers with two hits in four at-bats, including a double. Freshmen Allie Colleran, Hannah Peters and senior Nicole Ciricillo also recorded doubles.

The Bombers got on the board first in game one, scoring on a wild pitch in the third to take the 1-0 lead. Nazareth responded with a lone run in the top of the following inning, tying the contest at 1-1.

Ithaca scored twice in the bottom of the fifth, coming on four hits in the frame. An RBI single from Busa and an RBI bunt single from Gavin accounted for the runs, putting the score at 3-1.

Nazareth cut into the Ithaca lead with another run in the top of the sixth. The Golden Flyers scored on two hits and an Ithaca error, putting the score at 3-2 in favor of the Bombers.

Ithaca responded with its biggest offensive push of the game in the bottom of the frame. The Bombers scored six runs on four hits and one Nazareth error, giving the Bombers a healthy 9-2 advantage. Busa got the bats going with a bases-loaded two RBI single to left center, before Gavin tripled to bring in two more Bomber runs.

Ithaca added two more insurance runs in the frame, securing the Bombers' 9-2 game one victory.

Game Two: Ithaca – 11, Nazareth – 0 (5 Inn.)
Junior Allison Macari pitched all 5.0 innings in the shortened contest to earn the complete game win. She allowed just four hits and held the Golden Flyers scoreless, while also recording five strikeouts.

Gavin had another strong outing at the plate with two doubles, three RBI and two runs scored. Sophomore Jessie Fleck was 2-for-2 at the plate with a double, two RBI and two runs scored. Ciricillo and freshman Emily Bloom both picked up doubles, while Colleran was 1-for-2 with a home run.

Colleran's leadoff home run set the tone for Ithaca in the opening frame, as the Bombers scored three times to take the early lead. An RBI double from Bloom and an RBI single form senior Monica Capolongo accounted for the other Bomber runs in the inning.

Ithaca followed with a four-run offensive outburst in the bottom of the second. Senior Nina Lindberg walked to start the inning, before stealing second in the following at-bat. Fleck then singled Lindberg home for the first run of the frame, putting the score at 4-0. A two-RBI double from Gavin later in the inning, followed by an RBI single from Robichaud secured three more runs for the Bombers, pushing Ithaca's lead to 7-0.

The Bombers scored four more runs on four hits in the bottom of the third, thanks to an RBI double from Fleck, a pinch-hit RBI single Peters and two bases-loaded walks.

Macari took care of the rest, allowing just one hit in the final two innings to secure the 11-0 victory in game two.
 

ST. JOHN FISHER v UTICA
The St. John Fisher College softball team swept host Utica College on Sunday, winning 2-0 and 7-2. The Cardinals improve to 23-9 overall and 7-3 in the Empire 8 Conference.
 
Fisher 2, Utica 0 
Neither team scored until Meghan Burns broke it open with a solo shot in the top of the sixth inning. It was the senior captain's third homer of the year and her 13th in her career.
 
Lauren Owens helped Fisher add an insurance run in the following inning. Jennifer Knaak reached first base on a fielder's choice then advanced to second on a Burns single. Pinchrunner Christina Sakran scored when Owens doubled down the left field line.
 
Knaak, Burns and Owens finished with two hits apiece.
 
Lindsey Thayer scattered seven hits and two walks with seven strikeouts in a complete-game effort.
 
Fisher 7, Utica 2
With the help of Utica and a series of errors, Fisher was quick to jump out to a 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning.
 
Fisher added to its lead in the fourth when Kristina Balsano hit her second career home run, bringing in two runs for the Cardinals.
 
Trailing 3-0, Utica had its chance in the bottom of the inning. The Pioneers had bases loaded with just one out, but Fisher caught two flyballs to end the threat.
 
Fisher added four runs in the top of the seventh to clinch the victory. Owens brought in three runs – Sakran, Knaak and Katie Mazierski -- on a double down the left field line.

Thayer threw another complete game from the circle, allowing five hits, two runs (both earned) and three walks with four strikeouts.


ELMIRA v Hilbert
The Elmira College softball team picked up a pair of convincing five-inning victories over visiting Hilbert College Sunday afternoon, downing the Hawks 8-0 and 14-0 in the two games. The Soaring Eagles flexed their muscle at the plate as they combined for 23 hits, including six extra-base hits, in the two wins.
 
Elmira's top two performers with the bat were Jacquelyn Heggie'16 and Samantha Hawksley'16. Heggie combined to go 5-for-7 with two triples, eight RBI, and two runs scored. She also stole two bases, one in each game, moving to 8-for-8 in stolen base attempts on the year. Hawksley also had five hits, going 5-for-5 at the plate. She had four RBI and scored five runs while also matching Heggie with two stolen bases.
 
Not to be completely outdone by her sister, Julianne Heggie'16 was 2-for-4 with two walks with one of her hits being a triple. She also stole two bases for her seventh and eighth stolen bases of the year. Rounding out EC's offensive performance were multi-hit producers Hannah Lundgren'18 (3-for-5), Emily Carlin'17 (2-for-4), Marisa Bernardi'18 (2-for-2), and Katie McDougal'18 (2-for-3).
 
The Purple and Gold were lights out from the pitcher's circle as Bernardi, Carlin, and Kelsey Condidorio'18 combined to thrown 10 innings of shutout ball, allowing just nine hits, all of which were singles, and striking out two Hawks. Bernardi picked-up her second career win with a five-hit shutout while Carlin and Condidorio combined to throw the shutout in game two. Carlin pitched three innings, allowing one hit, while Condidorio finished the game by allowing three hits in the final two innings.
 
Game One: Elmira 8, Hilbert 0 (F/5)
EC used a triple by Julianne Heggie in the bottom of the first inning to push across the game's first run. Then, in the second inning, Elmira broke it open with three runs coming from RBI singles by Hawksley and Jacquelyn Heggie. On the defensive side, the Soaring Eagles were rolling as Bernardi was allowing nothing but three singles through three innings. She loaded the bases in the third inning, but worked her way out of it to preserve the shutout.
 
The Purple and Gold added a run to their total in the bottom of the fourth inning to make it 5-0, and then ended the game in the fifth inning with three runs, bringing it to an 8-0 finish. After Bernardi singled home Lundgren, and Hawksley singled to put runners on the corner, Jacquelyn Heggie tripled to deep center field to bring both home and close out EC's victory.
 
Game Two: Elmira 14, Hilbert 0 (F/5)
EC had everything going its way in game two of the doubleheader. Carlin started game two and did not allow her first baserunner until the ninth batter came to the plate and hit a grounder just out of the reach of Julianne Heggie at second base. But between Carlin and Condidorio, who came in for Carlin after the third inning, Elmira allowed just four hits, keeping the Hilbert offense quiet.
 
The Soaring Eagle offense was anything but quiet as they erupted for a season-high 14 runs against the Hawks. The Heggie twins applied pressure on the basepaths in the first inning, each recording a stolen base. With the Heggies on the corners, Julianne would steal second base, forcing Hilbert's catcher to throw down. On the throw, however, Jacquelyn would take off for home and score easily, giving EC the 1-0 lead.
 
The second inning saw the Purple and Gold score 12 runs, breaking open the game. EC batted around the lineup before recording an out and each of the nine Elmira players scored at least one run in the inning. Several new faces took the field for the Soaring Eagles over the final three innings, and they would help produce EC's final run in the fourth inning, bringing the game to its 14-0 final score.

SCHOOL	CONF	OVERALL
Alfred	7-1	25-3
Ithaca	9-3	15-11
St. John Fisher	7-3	23-9
Stevens	6-4	20-7-1
Utica	4-6	12-14
Nazareth	3-7	10-14
Elmira	1-7	6-8
Houghton	1-7	3-22