The Stony Brook softball team traveled to Harrisonburg, V.A. this weekend to particpate in the JMU Invitational. The Seawolves played St. John’s, Maryland and James Madison University.
The Seawolves opened up the weekend with a Saturday morning matchup against St. John’s. Despite a strong rally, the Red Storm held on to beat Stony Brook 8-5.
St. John’s shortstop Monique Landini went 4-for-4 in the game and drove in
two runs.
The scoring started early with a three-run first inning for the Red Storm on RBI singles by Landini and Yvonne Rericha.
Stony Brook answered in the bottom of the first as Shayla Giosia showed her power and knocked a solo homer to left center. St. John’s plated three more in the top of the second, making the score 6-1. However the Seawolves would not give up, scoring two more runs of their own in the bottom of the inning.
Going into the bottom of the fourth, the Red Storm led the Seawolves 7-3. Melissa Phelan led off the inning with a solo home run down the left field line, and Kellie Reynolds drove Patty Borges home with an RBI double to left, closing the gap to 7-5.
But, St. John’s put the nail in the coffin off the bat of an RBI double by Brittany Garcia in the top of the fifth. Jane Sallen started on the mound for Stony Brook and was credited with the loss, giving up six runs on seven hits, walking two and
fanning three.
The second game of the tournament was much closer as the Seawolves fell to Maryland, 2-1. It was a pitchers’ duel from the start. The Terrapins got on the board early as Erin Pronobis hit an RBI double to left center, sending Corey Schwartz home in the top of the first. Maryland scored again in the second inning as Sallen walked Hannah Dewey with the bases loaded, forcing Shannon Bustillos home.
The Seawolves scored their lone run of the game on a solo home run by Kim Ragazzo in the bottom of the third inning.
Sallen took the mound once again for Stony Brook and pitched a strong complete game against Maryland. She allowed two runs on five hits, three walks, and six strikeouts.
Kaitlyn Schmeiser started for the Terrapins, getting her 11th win after pitching seven innings. She gave up one run, five hits, walked two, and fanned seven.
SBU closed out the tournament with a dramatic 6-4 comeback against James Madison, overcoming a four-run deficit in the top of the seventh inning. The Dukes scored in the bottom of the first on a three-run homer off the bat of Megan Good, plating Erica Field and Niki Prince. They extended their lead in the bottom of the fifth as Prince lined a double into left and sent Tahli Moore home, making the score 4-0.
Stony Brook finally got on the board in the top of the sixth on a sac fly by Phelan. The Seawolves scored again on a wild pitch, closing the gap to 4-2.
A seventh-inning rally gave Stony Brook a 6-4 lead heading into the bottom of the seventh. The Seawolves were able to close out the game after allowing a two-out single in the seventh inning.
Allison Cukrov got her first win of the season, pitching a complete game. She gave up four runs on six hits, walked one and struck out an impressive eight batters.
Jailyn Ford hurled seven innings as well, allowing six runs on nine hits, one walk and eight strikeouts.
The Seawolves will travel to Teaneck, N.J. to play a doubleheader Fairleigh Dickinson this Wednesday. The games start at 4 p.m. and 6 p.m.
