Little Falls, NJ (3/24/02) -- Co-host Montclair State went 2-2 today to finish in third place in the 2002 MSU/Kean Softball Classic, falling to Ithaca (NY) College, 8-2, before rebounding to blank Bridgewater State (MA) College, 5-0.

MSU is now 9-5 overall this spring. Ithaca (8-6) completed a four-game weekend sweep with its victory over Montclair State, finishing in first place in the Classic while handing the Red Hawks their second straight loss.

Junior designated player ELIZABETH YENTEMA (Randolph, NJ) led IC offensively with four hits and three RBIs, as the Bombers built a 5-0 lead after two innings and then tacked on three more runs in the third frame for an 8-0 advantage. Junior pitcher ABIGAIL HANRAHAN (3-3) scattered eight MSU hits over six innings while walking three batters and striking out seven Red Hawks in the win. Freshman outfielder MEGAN SWEENEY (Edison, NJ) stole home plate in the third inning for MSU's first run, and catcher TONYA BARNES (Mechanicsville, VA) singled home senior infielder TARA GIALANELLA (West Valley, NJ) in the seventh stanza for Montclair's other score.

In the nightcap against Bridgewater, the Red Hawks and Bears played to a scoreless tie until the top of the fifth inning, when Montclair used one hit and two sacrifices/errors to load the bases. MSU then picked up runs by Barnes and junior pinch-runner ALLISON KREISS (Lakewood, NJ) off a fielder's choice and a 6-3 out to go ahead, 2-0. Montclair would then add a run by Gialanella in the sixth inning, and scores by junior outfielders STEPHANIE ROMANKO (N. Brunswick, NJ) and VALERIE TAURIELLO (Newark, NJ) in the seventh session for the 5-0 win. Sophomore pitcher CRYSTAL SWEENEY (Edison, NJ) struck out eight BSC batters and allowed just four hits and two walks in raising her record to 6-2 this spring.