SAINTS COMPLETE SPRING TRIP

WITH 3-9 RECORD

Mar. 22: The St. Lawrence University softball team finished their annual spring break trip to Fort Myers, FL with an overall mark of 3-9 after finishing the trip 1-3 in their final four contests.  The Saints split with Centenary and Worcester State before being swept by New Paltz and Plymouth State in five innings.

 

Centenary would give the Saints a tough 5-4 loss in the opening game on Thursday.  With the two teams tied 1-1 in the top of the fourth inning, St. Lawrence took its first lead over the Cyclones when junior Molly Swan singled, advanced on a pair of wild pitches, and scored on a hit by classmate Amy Atkins.  Centenary College would come right back in the bottom half of the frame, though, scoring two off of sophomore pitcher Meg Goodemote to claim a 4-2 lead.

 

St. Lawrence would have a dramatic rally with two outs in the top of the seventh inning to knot the game at 4-4.  Goodemote and junior Jess Manderfield started the rally with singles, and Goodemote cut the deficit to 4-3 after Centenary’s second baseman mishandled a sharp grounder off the bat of sophomore Melissa Rogers.  Swan then delivered a clutch double to right-center, scoring Manderfield to tie the game at 4-4.

 

The Saints then appeared to be headed into extra innings, as Centenary’s first two hitters were retired.  However, a double by Krystal Brugger landed her in scoring position and she took third on an error.  The Centenary sophomore would then use heads-up base-running, as she came around to score on a wild pitch to win the game 5-4 for the Cyclones.

 

Goodemote suffered the loss for St. Lawrence, allowing eight hits, four walks and three hit batsmen while striking out two.

 

Despite the dramatic loss, the Scarlet and Brown were able to rebound in the second game on Thursday to earn a split behind a 6-2 win over Worcester State. 

 

In the top half of the third, the Saints picked up a two-RBI single by senior Lilah Brown, who drove in Rogers and Swan to put her team on top 3-1.  Worcester State would close the gap to one run in the bottom of the fifth on two hits and a St. Lawrence error to bring the score to 3-2.

 

However, the Saints’ offense would come through in the later innings to solidify the lead.  Sophomore Rachel Duffany, who was on the mound for St. Lawrence, helped herself with a two-run double in the top of the sixth inning, plating Brown and Atkins for a 5-2 lead.  Swan then tacked on another insurance run with a two-out triple to deep center field which followed a ground-rule double up the left field line from Rogers to cap the game’s scoring at 6-2.

 

Duffany earned the win, her third of the year, having allowed eight hits, three walks and two hit batsmen while striking out a pair of Lancers.

 

The Saints would have little good fortune in their final games in Ft. Myers, as errors and a struggling offense plagued them against both New Paltz and Plymouth State.  Both games were called after five innings with their opponents leading 8-0.

 

St. Lawrence will have nearly two weeks off before returning to action for their home-opening doubleheader against Elmira College on Thursday, April 2 at 3:00pm.

 

 

 

SALEM STATE, LASELL SWEEP

SAINTS IN FORT MYERS

Mar. 18: The St. Lawrence University softball team dropped both of their Wednesday contests in Fort Myers, FL, as the Saints were swept by Salem State and Lasell.  The Scarlet and Brown fell to Salem State, 7-6, in eight innings before losing 5-1 to Lasell.

The losses drop St. Lawrence to 2-4 on the season, with four more games remaining on their spring trip.
The Vikings jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the third after two scoreless innings of play, with the four scores coming thanks to three St. Lawrence errors.  Salem State would then tack another run on in the fourth for a 5-0 cushion.

The Saints would mount their rally in the fifth inning, as Junior Amy Atkins led off the frame with a double to left center and scored on a Salem State error.  Classmate Jennifer Girard earned a walk and scored on a double to right-center by junior Jessica Manderfield.  Sophomore Melissa Rogers then capped the scoring in the inning with an RBI single to pull her team to within one run of the Vikings, 4-3.

St. Lawrence would take their first lead of the game over Salem State in the sixth, as Atkins reached on an error and Girard followed with another walk.  After sophomore Rachel Duffany blooped a single to right field to load the bases, Manderfield drew an RBI walk to tie the score.  With two outs, the bases loaded and the score tied, junior Molly Swan delivered a clutch single to plate Duffany and put the Saints on top 5-4.

Though St. Lawrence took the lead, they were unable to hold on to it for long as the Vikings capitalized on two errors, a walk and a pair of wild pitches to score the tying run at 5-5. 

With neither team able to score in the seventh, St. Lawrence again took a lead at 6-5 in the top half of the eighth inning.  With a runner starting at second base, Girard sacrificed rookie Chelsea Hanno to third.  Following an out, Manderfield scored Hanno on an RBI single to put the Saints ahead for the second time.

However, Salem State would follow suit, sacrificing their runner to third and driving her in with an RBI single to tie the game again at 6-6.  However, an error sent the batter to second base, which set up the game-winning walk off single for the Vikings, capturing a 7-6 win.

Duffany took the loss on the mound, while Manderfield went 2-for-4 at the plate with four runs batted in.  Rogers was also solid offensively, going 3-for-5 with an RBI.

In the afternoon game against Lasell, Meg Goodemote took the ball for St. Lawrence and pitched her best game of the season.  The sophomore allowed eight hits including a pair of doubles, but walked no batters and was hurt by errors behind her.

Lasell captured a 2-0 lead on two hits and a pair of St. Lawrence errors in the bottom of the second inning.  Girard would spark the Saints in the top half of the fifth, though, but pulling her team back to within a run at 2-1.  After she led off with a walk, the Gouverneur, NY native advanced to third on an error and scored on a fielder’s choice grounder by Manderfield.  However, the Scarlet and Brown would strand runners in scoring position again with less than two outs, which would come back to haunt them.

The Lasers would put the game away with runs in the fifth and sixth innings.  Lasell answered in bottom of the fifth with back-to-back singles followed by a two-run double.  They then added an insurance run in the sixth to cap the scoring at 5-1.

Goodemote suffered the loss despite striking out two, while St. Lawrence stranded 11 runners including six in scoring position.

The Saints will look to get back on track tomorrow, Thursday, March 19 when they face Centenary and Worcester State.

 

 

 

SAINTS SPLIT MONDAY GAMES

WITH HAWKS, DIPLOMATS

Mar. 16: The St. Lawrence University softball team earned a split on Monday to move to 2-4 on the season.  The Scarlet and Brown held off a late rally by Roger Williams to win 6-5 before Franklin and Marshall blanked the Saints 6-0 in the afternoon game in Fort Myers, FL.

 

In the opening game, the Saints used a solid blend of offense and pitching to open up a 6-0 cushion.  Sophomore Melissa Rogers scored on a double by junior Molly Swan in the top half of the first for a 1-0 lead.  With sophomore pitcher Rachel Duffany and the team’s defense playing well, St. Lawrence was able to keep the Hawks off the scoreboard while extending their lead through the middle and late innings.

 

Junior Jenna Padeni’s lead-off double in the fifth inning led to a 2-0 advantage after junior Jessica Manderfield’s sacrifice fly.  However, it was a needed four-run top of the seventh that would ensure the Saints’ victory with all four runs coming with two outs.  After Manderfield singled, Rogers and Swan loaded the bases with consecutive walks.  Senior Lilah Brown then delivered the clutch hit, drilling a bases-clearing double to open up a 5-0 lead. Senior Emilie Lannamann capped the inning with an RBI double to left center for a 6-0 advantage.

 

Roger Williams would mount their comeback effort in the bottom of the seventh.  Following a pair of St. Lawrence errors, the Hawks would finally get to Duffany with five base hits and a walk that cut their deficit to one run at

6-5.  With the bases loaded and only one out, Roger Williams’ Christine Bean hit a fly ball to right field which sophomore Meg Goodemote handled and came up throwing to the plate.  Her throw to Padeni at home narrowly beat the Hawk attempting to score from third, giving St. Lawrence a hard-fought 6-5 win.

 

Duffany picked up the win while allowing eight hits, four walks and three earned runs.  She also racked up three strikeouts.

 

In the afternoon game against the Diplomats of Franklin & Marshall, St. Lawrence simply couldn’t deliver a clutch hit, as they left runners on base in every inning.  Franklin & Marshall took advantage of the Saints’ shortcomings by opening the game with a two-run homerun over the left field wall off of Goodemote.  The Diplomats then tacked on runs in the second, fourth, fifth and sixth innings to open a 6-0 lead.  A dazzling catch by Lannamann kept it 6-0 in the top of the seventh inning, as she robbed Lauren Incorvaia with a leaping catch at the wall.

 

Goodemote suffered the loss, giving up four earned runs on six hits and four walks.

 

St. Lawrence will have Tuesday off before returning to action on Wednesday against Salem State and Lasell.

 

 

SAINTS START 2009 CAMPAIGN WITH

1-3 MARK IN FORT MYERS

Mar. 15: The St. Lawrence University softball team opened their season in style on Saturday in Ft. Myers, FL, as the Saints picked up a solid 10-2 victory in five innings over Fredonia State.  The team then narrowly dropped the following game to Bowdoin before being swept by Plymouth State and Western New England College (WNEC) on Sunday.

In the season opener against Fredonia, which was the first-ever meeting between the two schools, the Blue Devils jumped out to a 2-0 lead.  They scored one run in the first behind two base hits and a double then followed with one in the third behind a pair of St. Lawrence errors.

The Saints responded in the top of the fourth, tying the game at 2-2.  Sophomore Melissa Rogers and junior Molly Swan had consecutive base hits, with Rogers scoring the team’s first run on a double steal from first and third.  Swan then came around to score after a base hit by Lilah Brown and a throwing error.

St. Lawrence would put the game away in the top of the fifth inning, scoring eight runs on four hits.  Errors plagued Fredonia State in the inning, and with the eight runs, sophomore Rachel Duffany picked up her first win of the season after striking out four and giving up only one walk.

Meanwhile, juniors Amy Atkins and Jessica Manderfield helped provide the offense for the Scarlet and Brown.  Atkins went 2-for-3 with two RBI’s while Manderfield also picked up a pair of RBI’s in the win.

In Saturday’s afternoon game, Bowdoin would score one run in each of the first six innings to build a solid advantage.  St. Lawrence would get on the scoreboard in the top of the sixth when Swan doubled home Manderfield from second base.  The Saints would then pick up two more runs in the seventh on a base hit by sophomore Meg Goodemote, which scored senior Emilie Lannamann.  Goodemote would later score on a Polar Bear error, but the offense was too little, too late as Bowdoin held on for a 6-3 win.

The Saints earned four hits in the loss, but six errors proved to be too much to overcome.  Goodemote suffered the loss, allowing seven hits, striking out three while allowing three walks.

In Sunday’s opener against Plymouth State, the Panthers were able to get to Duffany with six earned runs on ten hits.  Despite totaling six hits in the game, the only offense the Saints were able to muster came off the bat of Lannamann, who drilled an RBI single to score Rogers.  Plymouth State was able to hang on to a 6-1 victory, giving Duffany her first loss of the season having given up three walks while striking out five. 

St. Lawrence finished with six hits, four walks, five strikeouts and three errors in the game.

The afternoon meeting against WNEC is one that the Saints will soon try to forget, as the Golden Bears were able to get to Goodemote early behind 14 hits a walk.  Though senior Sandy Gates relieved Goodemote in the bottom of the fourth, WNEC continued their offensive assault by scoring four more runs.  With the Saint bats continuing to struggle, the Golden Bears earned an impressive 15-1 win in five innings.

St. Lawrence’s lone run came in the top of the third inning when Swan doubled home Goodemote, who went

2-for-3 at the plate.

The Scarlet and Brown (1-3) will be in action again on Monday when the team squares off with Roger Williams at 9:00am and Franklin and Marshall at 11:00am.