Alfred and St. John Fisher Survive Wild Day, Will Meet in E8 Softball Championship
CHAMPIONSHIP CENTRAL
Alfred posted a pair of extra-inning wins to advance to Sunday's championship, while St. John Fisher continued to impress during this weekend's Empire 8 Softball Championship. Here's how Saturday's action which featured a trio of one-run games and two extra-inning affairs played out -
#2 St. John Fisher 3, #1 Stevens 2 | BOXSCORE
Ashley Prince drove in all three runs and
Emily Trotman won her 21st game of the season as the Cardinals advanced to the Empire 8 Championship behind a 3-2 win over top-seeded Stevens at Weehawken Waterfront Park. With the victory, the Cardinals improved to 25-14 on the season.
After two scoreless innings to open the game, Fisher got on the board in the top of the third as Trotman led off with an infield single before moving around the horn on two straight sacrifice bunts. With a runner at third and two down, Prince came to bat and cracked a run-scoring single to left to put the Cardinals ahead, 1-0.
The game remained a one-run affair until the top of the fifth when
Maddy Pepke drew a one-out walk before Prince crushed a two-run home run to make it a three-run contest heading to the home half of the fifth.
The Cardinals finished with six hits on the day led by Prince who was 2-for-4 with three RBI and a homer in the win.
Sammie Torlish had two hits in four at-bats while
Jessica Sardina and Trotman rounded out the hitting.
Fisher will play for its third straight Empire 8 Championship beginning at 11 a.m. on Sunday at Weehawken Waterfront Park. Fisher will need to win one game overall while Alfred will need to take two wins to claim the conference crown.
#3 Alfred 3, #4 Nazareth 2, Final - 10 innings | BOXSCORE
The Saxons got on the board first in the bottom of the opening inning.
Alyssa Guitron reached on a single up the middle. She reached second as Lugo singled a shot to center field, putting Saxons on first and second bases. Ceja gave each runner a base on her sacrificed bunt, making it runners on third and second with two outs.
Jillian Murray drove a shot right at the Nazareth pitcher to score Guitron and give the Saxons the 1-0 start.
In the bottom of the fourth inning, Alfred struck again as
Kelley Staub scored when the Nazareth catcher threw to third base, off target and to left field, allowing Staub to book it home for the 2-0 advantage. Naz tied the game late with a two-run homerun to left-center field.
The Saxons and Golden Flyers would remain neck-and-neck for the next four innings until the bottom of the 10th. Lugo singled to right centerfield as the second batter for AU. She then proceeded to steal not just second base, but third while Ceja was at the plate. With a full, three balls and two strike count that lasted seven pitches, on the eighth, Ceja ripped a shot off the centerfield fence to drive home the game-winning run after two hours of battling.
#3 Alfred 4, #1 Stevens 3, Final - 11 innings | BOXSCORE
Stevens was the first team to score in the top of the fifth, giving them a 1-0 lead before, in the bottom of the inning, Staub forced another bad throw from an opponent as she was put in a rundown situation between second and third base. During the rundown, the Stevens third base player overthrew to second base and sent the toss sailing into right field, allowing Staub to round third and slide home for the 1-1 tying run.
Steven retook the lead in the top of the sixth with a run scoring off a passed ball. In the bottom of the sixth,
Lu Krawczyk smacked a two-run homerun as she drove home
Alana Eaton and gave the Saxons their first lead of the nightcap, 3-2. The Stevens batters stayed persistent as they crossed home one more time on a sacrificed flyball to left field, tying the score, 3-3.
Both teams displayed multiple scoring chances in the eighth, ninth and tenth innings but both defenses held strong. In the bottom of the 11
th inning, however, O'Toole was placed on first base after taking a shot to the back from the Stevens pitcher. Krawczyk advanced O'Toole with a bunt before Mejia lasered a shot up the middle, allowing O'Toole to score from second.
Krawczyk led the bats with two RBIs on her home run. The Saxons will next play St. John Fisher College at 11AM on Sunday afternoon. They will need to win that game to force the if necessary game two Sunday afternoon.
2019 Softball Tournament Schedule:
Friday, May 3
Day 1
Game 1 No. 2 St. John Fisher 3, No. 3 Alfred 0
Game 2 No. 1 Stevens 1, No. 4 Nazareth 0
Saturday, May 4
Day 2
Game 3 No. 2 St. John Fisher 3, #1 Stevens 2
Game 4 No. 3 Alfred 3, No. 4 Nazareth 2, 10 innings
Game 5 No. 3 Alfred 4, #1 Stevens 3, 11 innings
Sunday, May 5
Day 3
Game 6 No. 2 St. John Fisher vs. No. 3 Alfred | 11 am
Game 7 Winner Game 6 vs. Loser Game 6 (if necessary) | 1:30 pm
- Information for this release provided by the athletic communications staff at St. John Fisher -
ABOUT THE EMPIRE 8 CONFERENCE
The members of the Empire 8 Conference are committed first and foremost to the pursuit of academic excellence and the league is regarded as an outstanding NCAA Division III conference. The membership has distinguished itself among its peer group for its quality institutions, spirited and sportsmanlike competition, outstanding services and highly ethical policies and practices. Its commitment to serve the educational needs of its student-athletes is the hallmark of the E8. For more on the Empire 8 visit
www.empire8.com and
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