The Stony Brook softball team traveled to Scared Heart University on Wednesday, April 30 for a double header against the Pioneers.
Despite strong pitching perfrmances by starters Alyssa Struzenberg and Casey Jacobs, the Seawolves dropped both low scoring games, by scored of 1-0 and 2-1, respectively. The Seawolves stranded 12 runners on base in the 1-0 loss, and Sacred Heart picked up the win on a walk off double. In game two, Sacred Heart brought in two runs in the bottom of the third inning. Stony Brook scratched one across in the top of the fifth, but they were unable to score after that.
The team then won its final home series of the season by sweeping a doubleheader against Manhattan College on May 1. The Seawolves won the games by scores of 8-0 and 11-3. With the wins Stony Brook improved their overall record to 28-20-1. Sophomore Alyssa Struzenberg allowed just two hits while earning her 19th win of the season in the first game. Jacobs earned the win in the second game for Stony Brook, increasing her record to 7-3 on the year.
Struzenberg set a new school record for most wins in a season when she helped to beat Vermont twice May 3 on the road. The two wins give Struzenberg 21 victories this season, which is one more than the previous record of 20 by Angela Andrews in 2004.
In game one of the Vermont doubleheader Struzenberg threw four innings to pick up the win. In game two she struck out 10 in a two hit shutout.
The Seawolves wasted no time getting on the top in game one, scoring a run in the first inning when junior Molly Kestranek was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded. Stony Brook added three more runs in the next inning with a three-run homer to right field by sophomore Vicki Kavitsky. They were on a streak and they kept it coming in the third, by means of an RBI single by Kavitsky followed by a wild pitch, an error and a sacrifice fly by junior Kelsi Fanelli to increase their lead to 8-0 in the third.
Stony Brook tacked on three more runs in the final inning, which was highlighted by an RBI single to right field by senior Ashley Westphal. In the second game Westphal drove in the lone run in the 1-0 victory with a sacrifice fly in the third inning.
Notes: Stony Brook sophomore Casey Jacobs was named the ECAC softball pitcher of the week according to a release from the conference on Wednesday. Jacobs picked up a win and a save last week while posting a 0.00 ERA. She struck out 14 batters in her 13.2 innings pitched, while allowing merely two walks. This is the second week in a row a Stony Brook athlete has been acknowledged by the ECAC.
The Seawolves clinched the third seed in the America East Tournament, which will be hosted next week by the #1 seed Albany. The winner of the tournament gets an automatic bid to the NCAA Softball Championship.
