Stevens Sweeps Elmira; Ithaca Splits; Naz Falls Twice
STEVENS v ELMIRA
The Stevens Institute of Technology softball team picked-up a pair of Empire 8 Conference wins Sunday with 9-0 and 9-1 victories over Elmira College.
The wins moved Stevens to 24-7-1 (10-4) while Elmira fell to 8-14 (1-12).
Stevens 9, Elmira 0
After trading zeroes in the first, the Ducks offense exploded for eight runs in the second. With one run already in, sophomore
Emily Sellitti smashed a grand slam to plate four more. The Ducks put two more runners on in the inning where freshman
Lauren Shirley drove them in with a homer to left center.
The lead was enough for freshman pitcher Oliva Gemma who worked around base runners in the second and third to keep the shutout intact.
Stevens added one more in the fourth off an RBI single from junior
Noelle Mulligan before Gemma retired the side in order in both the fourth and fifth to seal the run-rule shortened win.
The grand slam was the first of Sellitti's career while Gemma allowed just two hits and struck out seven for her 10
th win of the season.
Stevens 9, Elmira 1
Sophomore
Jessica Rees ripped a three-run double in the first to give the Ducks the early 3-0 lead before Shirley followed it up with an RBI single to right.
The Ducks added another off an error, followed by a two-RBI double from junior
Sydney Spitz to cap the seven run first inning.
Gemma held the lead with scoreless innings in the first and second, allowing the Ducks to tack-on a run in the third off an RBI single from the Stevens pitcher to help her own cause. Elmira got on the board with one in the fourth, but a Shirley home run in the sixth put the Ducks up 9-1.
The lead was more than enough for Gemma who retired the side in order in the sixth to seal the run-rule shortened win.
The home run was Shirley's sixth of the season, tying the single season mark set by Rees earlier this season. Gemma surrendered three hits and no earned runs for her 11
th win of the season.
ITHACA v Buffalo State
The Ithaca College softball team split a home doubleheader with Buffalo State Sunday afternoon. The Bombers defeated the Bengals in game one by a score of 4-3 in 12 Innings, before dropping the second contest, 4-2. Ithaca's overall record moves to 20-12 with the non-conference split.
Game One: Ithaca – 4, Buffalo State – 3 (12 Innings)
Junior
Laura Quicker earned the marathon victory after pitching all 12 innings in game one. She allowed just one earned run on nine hits, while also recording five strikeouts. Her record in the circle moves to 11-7.
Freshman
Allie Colleran paced the Bombers with three hits in five at-bats, including a double with one RBI. Junior
Casey Gavin also recorded multiple hits with two singles in three appearances. Classmate
Kelly Robichaud recorded her sixth home run of the season in a 1-for-3 outing.
Stellar pitching highlighted the majority of the contest, as neither team was able to score until extra innings. The Bengals struck first, scoring one run on two hits in the top of the eighth.
With two outs and the game on the line, Robichaud connected on a shot to left center, clearing the wall and evening the contest at 1-1.
Heading into the 10th frame, the international tie-breaker rule was put into effect, as both teams began placing runners at second base to begin each inning.
After Buffalo State scored once in the top of the 10th, Ithaca responded with an RBI sacrifice bunt from senior
Francesca Busa in the bottom of the frame.
Another Bengal run in the top of the 11th was once again matched by the Bombers. A sacrifice fly from freshman
Emily Bloom accounted for the third Ithaca run of the game, putting the score at 3-3 heading into the 12th inning.
After holding the Bengals scoreless, an RBI single to center field from Colleran brought home the fourth Bomber run of the game, giving Ithaca the 4-3 extra-innings victory.
Game Two: Buffalo State – 4, Ithaca – 2
Junior
Allison Macari was credited with the loss in game two after allowing three earned runs on 10 Bengal hits. Macari also recorded three strikeouts through 7.0 innings.
Five Bombers picked up a hit in game two, including Colleran who was 1-for-4 with a double. Gavin was 1-for-3 with an RBI.
Ithaca struck first in the contest, scoring one run on two hits in the bottom of the first. With runners at second and third, Gavin grounded out to the second baseman, scoring Colleran from third for the 1-0 lead.
The Bengals answered with three-straight runs, including a lone run in the second and two in the third to take a 3-1 lead over the Bombers.
Back-to-back singles from Gavin and Robichaud started the fifth for Ithaca, before Robichaud advanced on a wild pitch to put runners at second and third. Bloom grounded out to third in the next at-bat, but scored Gavin from third to put the score at 3-2.
Despite Ithaca's pressure, the Bengals were able to add an insurance run in the top of the sixth, pushing their lead to 4-2. The Bombers weren't able to score again in the contest, giving Buffalo State the 4-2 game two win.
NAZARETH v RIT
Visiting Nazareth managed just two hits against RIT pitcher Lauren Mahar Sunday as the Golden Flyers dropped the first game of a non-conference softball doubleheader, 2-0. The Tigers also won the second game by rallying for three runs in the bottom of the fifth for a 6-4 win.
The losses dropped Nazareth to 13-19 overall. RIT is 11-21.
Mahar walked just one batter and struck out six for the complete game shutout win. Sophomore
Nicole White also pitched well for Nazareth as she allowed only five hits over six inning and struck out five.
The game was scoreless until the bottom of the fourth when RIT's Sarah Wolcott cracked a solo home run to center field leading off the frame. The Tigers added an unearned run in the fifth after a single by Alexa Farner, who advanced to third on an error and scored on a sacrifice fly by McKenzie Martin.
Meghan Barry and
Morgan Ross each had harmless singles for Nazareth in the third and sixth innings respectively and
Carly Pike drew a two-out walk in the fifth for the only base runners against Mahar.
In the second game, RIT carried a 3-0 lead into the fifth inning, when Nazareth scored four unearned runs. After the first two hitters were retired,
Sarah Papponetti singled to center and advanced to third base on a double by Barry. Both runners scored on an RIT fielding error that initiated from the bat of Ross.
Emily Graham followed with an infield single and both runners scored on a double by
Maureen Rogers. The top half of the inning ended with Nazareth up 4-3, but RIT scratched out three runs in the bottom half to win the game.
Wolcott drove home the tying run with a double. Emma Sarles reached on a walk and both runners came home on a double by Brooke Kaminski. Sierra Valentine was the winning pitcher after yielding seven hits without a walk and five strikeouts. Senior
Nicole Bayona, who relieved starter
Danae Wetherbee in the fourth inning, took the loss and dropped to 5-7 on the season.
|
SCHOOL |
CONF |
OVERALL |
|
Alfred |
11-1 |
29-3 |
|
Ithaca |
11-3 |
20-12 |
|
Stevens |
10-4 |
24-7-1 |
|
St. John Fisher |
9-5 |
26-12 |
|
Utica |
6-8 |
14-16 |
|
Nazareth |
4-10 |
13-19 |
|
Houghton |
2-10 |
5-26 |
|
Elmira |
1-13 |
8-14 |