Mhontclair, NJ – Freshman
KAYLEE POWERS scampered home with the game-winning run in the bottom of the 10
th inning helping Montclair State to a split of its doubleheader with New York University at the MSU Softball Stadium on Saturday.
The Red Hawks rebounded from a 10-6 loss in the opener, winning 4-3 in the nightcap to improve to 8-6 on the year. Junior
NOEL HODGINS had four hits in the doubleheader for MSU.
Junior righthander
SAM KEATING went the distance in the second game spreading around 10 hits, striking out one and walking two in improving to 3-2.
Keating threw three shutout innings to open the game but was touched for three runs in the fourth. Jacqueline Finn was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded and Molly Webber and Morgan Clemens had RBI singles giving the Violets (8-4) a 3-0 lead.
Montclair would get those runs back in the fifth.
ALI WALEK scored on an error for the first run and
BLAKE SAPERSTEIN got the second with a sacrifice fly.
VALENTINA CUCCI tied the game at 3-3 with an RBI single to center.
Keating tossed clean innings in the sixth, seventh and eighth innings, but ran into trouble in the ninth as NYU's Caroline Saccacio tripled with one out. However Keating got a ground ball and lineout to end the threat.
The 10
th inning was even more precarious for the Red Hawks as NYU put runners at the corners with no one out. Keating induced a pop up for the first out and freshman
ELENA RADESICH gunned down the runner at third for the second out before snaring a line drive to end the inning.
In the bottom of the 10th Powers began the inning at second in the tie-breaker rule and it took four pitches for MSU to win the game. Hodgins laid down a sacrifice attempt that would become a base hit however on the play to first the ball was throw away allowing Powers to come home with the game-winning run.
Cucci and
VICTORIA GEHRING had two hits apiece for Montclair.
In the first game, a six-run inning by the Violets in the second proved too much for Montclair State to overcome. Hodgins went 3-for-5 with a pair of RBI while Powers was 2-for-4 with three runs scored.
The Red Hawks are back in action on Tuesday, March 28 when they host DeSales University at the MSU Softball Stadium. First pitch of the non-conference twinbill it slated for 3:00 pm.