Montclair, NJ – Freshman righthander
VALENTINA CUCCI tossed a four-hit shutout in the nightcap as Montclair State split its doubleheader with Hunter College at the MSU Softball Stadium on Thursday afternoon.
Freshman third baseman
ELENA RADESICH drove in a pair of runs as the Red Hawks bounced back from a 6-5 loss in Game 1 with a 5-0 victory. Montclair is now 9-7 on the year as it prepares for its first NJAC contests on Saturday, April 1 at defending champion Rowan University at 1:00 pm.
Cucci, who went 1-for-1 with three walks in the second game, picked up her first collegiate victory as she evened her record at 1-1 on the year. She struck out three and walked one allowing just two baserunners to reach second in the contest.
The Red Hawks gave Cucci all the support she needed with a four-run first innings.
KAYLEE POWERS and
NOEL HODGINS and
BLAKE SAPERSTEIN opened the inning with singles loading the bases. Powers scored on a passed ball and an error allowed Hodgins to come home with the second run. A second error by the Hawks (5-5) let Saperstein scored and an RBI single by Samantha DiClementi made it a 4-0 game.
Montclair added its final run in the second in almost similar fashion as Powers and Hodgins began the inning with singles. Saperstein moved them both along with a sacrifice and after Cucci drew a walk,
ALANA LUNA lofted a sacrifice fly for the final run.
Hodgins, Powers and Saperstein had two hits each for MSU.
In the opener, Montclair grabbed a first-inning lead as Cucci doubled home Powers while a sacrifice fly from
VICTORIA GEHRING gave MSU a 2-0 lead. That lead held up until the fifth when the Hawks scored five times. Stefanie Albot tied the game with a two-run single and Alana Vezza put Hunter in the lead with a three-run homer over the left-center fence.
Powers got a run back for MSU in the fifth with an RBI double and Radesich knotted the game at 5-5 in the sixth with a two-out, two-run double down the left field line.
Hunter though would regain the lead in the top of the seventh. Samantha Molloy singled through the right side with one out and moved into scoring position on an error. A wild pitch allowed her to go to third and she scampered home with the go-ahead run on a single by Victoria Slavik.
Caroline Bibula (1-1) got the win for Hunter while MSU's
SAM KEATING (3-3) took the loss.
???????Radesich and Powers had two hits apiece for Montclair State.
