PITTSFORD, N.Y. – For the second consecutive year, the nationally-ranked and top-seeded St. John Fisher College softball team came out on top as the Cardinals, who are ranked sixth in the latest National Fastpitch Coaches Association poll, defeated third-seeded Utica College on Sunday morning, 12-1, in five innings at The Softball Complex to claim the Empire 8 Championship and the Conference's automatic berth into the NCAA Division III Softball Championship. With the win, Fisher, which will head into NCAAs riding a 15-game winning streak, improved to 30-7 on the season. The Pioneers had their season come to a close with a 20-18 overall mark.
Fans can find out where the Cardinals will play and who they'll face in the NCAA Regional round during the
NCAA Selection Show, which airs on at 1 p.m. on Monday. The team's appearance marks the third straight year and ninth time in program history that the Cardinals will play in the NCAA Championship.
Sarah Kubik was named the Championship's Most Valuable Player after the Orchard Park native combined to go 3-for-5 with two home runs, five RBI, four runs scored and three walks over three games.
Senior pitcher
Lindsey Thayer moved to 20-3 in the circle after holding the Pioneers scoreless over five innings of work. Thayer surrendered just one hit on the day and finished with five strikeouts overall. Thayer has now authored 1,455 career strikeouts and sits just three shy of breaking the all-time Division III mark for career Ks.
Fisher produced 14 hits in the win including four extra base knocks.
Emma Savas went 3-for-3 at the plate with an RBI and a run scored while
Ashley Prince went 2-for-3 with a double, two RBI and a pair of runs scored.
Sammie Torlish and
Mary Claire Grosvenor each came up with two hits while Grosvenor drove in a pair and scored one of her own.
Katie Mazierski had one hit in two at-bats and moved to within two hits of breaking the Empire 8 record for career hits.
It didn't take long for Fisher to get on the board as the Cardinals came away with two runs on three hits in the bottom of the first when Kubik blasted her second home run in as many days that plated Prince who had kept the inning alive with a two-out double to left.
Utica got a run back in the top of the second after a leadoff walk came around to score, but the Cardinals pushed their advantage to three runs in the third inning after
Emily Trotman blasted a two-run shot to left to make it a 4-1 game.
Following a 1-2-3 top of the fourth, Fisher put the game away in the home half of the frame after scoring eight runs on seven hits. Mazierski and Sortisio set the table for a big inning after each reached on bunt singles. Sortisio promptly stole second before Prince drove in a pair with a single to left to make it 6-1. Kubik kept the inning going after being hit by a pitch to put two on before Torlish belted a single to center to load the bases with no outs. Following a pitching change by Utica, Trotman picked up an RBI with a bases loaded walk to put the Cardinals ahead 7-1. As the inning continued, Grosvenor stepped in plated a pair with a single to left before Savas beat out a single to second that scored Trotman and made it 10-1.
Jessica Sardina was inserted as a pinch hitter and made the most of her at-bat with an RBI-single to center while Mazierski rounded out the scoring with a sacrifice fly to left to cap off an eight-run inning with the Cardinals on top, 12-1.
In the top of the fifth, Thayer did what Thayer does and struck out the side to secure the Cardinals' sixth Empire 8 Championship in program history.