JWU Softball Wins First-Ever NCAA Tournament Contest But Eliminated by Husson

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Courtesy of JWU Athletics Communications

NORTON, Mass. - The softball team used four RBI from junior Kristen Solari (Old Bridge, N.J.) en route to their first ever win in the NCAA Tournament. The Wildcats defeated Eastern Connecticut State University, 6-3 in their second game of the NCAA Division III Softball Championship on Saturday afternoon before falling to Husson in the late game, 3-0.

The win against Eastern Connecticut was the first NCAA Tournament win in softball history and first by any women's program at Johnson & Wales.

JWU also fell to Wheaton, 4-1, on Friday as NCAA play began. 

The Wildcats earned their first lead in tournament history during the bottom of the first inning. FreshmanEileen Eads (Portsmouth, R.I.) reached on a miscue by the Warriors catcher after a bunt attempt and scampered to second after the right fielder misplayed the ball along the fence. Junior Cynthia Proby(Bremerton, Wash.) dropped a sacrifice bunt, advancing Eads to third before Solari sent a sacrifice fly to left scoring Eads.

JWU sent four runs across in the bottom of the second to extend their lead to 5-0. Emily Schaper (Pompton Lakes, N.J.) connected for a one-out double to left center before designated player Angelica Reyes (Arleta, Calif.) took her spot on second. A sacrifice bunt by sophomore Kaycee Babineau (Medway, Mass.) brought Reyes to third before pitcher Jennifer Corona (Middle Island, N.Y.) helped her own cause with a single up the middle. Eads followed up a walk by Alex Fantasia (Framingham, Mass.) with a single that sent Corona to the dish and extended the lead to 3-0. Solari dropped a single up the middle that scored two and gave JWU their 5-0 lead.

Corona pitched into a jam in the top of the third when ECSU sent two runners across and cut into the Wildcats lead. With runners on second and third and one out,Gina Georgetti hit a line drive to third that Eads grabbed moving to her left and tagged third base for the force out that ended the inning and the threat.

Solari grabbed her fourth RBI of the game in the bottom of the fourth inning that pushed the JWU lead to 6-2.

The Warriors scored one more in the top of the fifth on a missed squeeze bunt that resulted in a stolen base for Sam Rosetti.

Corona allowed just two hits in the final two innings en route to the historic 6-3 victory for the Wildcats.

In the nightcap, Husson pitcher Kayla Merrill took a perfect game into the bottom of the sixth before freshman Noelle Weiss (Hartland, Wisc.), in as a relief pitcher, knocked a triple down the right field line. The following at-bat she was thrown out at the plate on a grounder to second, securing the shutout for the Eagles.

The Eagles scored one run in the second, third and fourth innings en route to their 3-0 win. In the second, Sami Schultz singled and moved to third on back-to-back wild pitches before crossing the plate on a single by Haley Spiers.

Lyndsay Merrill knocked in the games second run on a single in the third before she grabbed another RBI in the bottom of the fourth to end the scoring for the day.

In the final inning, JWU sent the game-tying run to the plate after a two-out single by Gorecki and Amendolara was hit by a pitch but Kayla Merrill worked a 2-2 strikeout to end the game.

Johnson & Wales ends the year with a 22-16 record.