May 6, 2006
Box Score
Game two box
Staten Island, NY - The Wagner Seahawks softball team will now turn their focus towards next weekend's Northeast Conference Tournament after falling twice to Robert Morris by scores of 8-5 (9) and 3-1. The pair of loses ends the regular season for Wagner at 34-18 and a program best 15-5 in the NEC. The Colonials, last year's NEC Champion, improved to 22-17 and 15-3 in the league.
"I felt we battled throughout both games today," said Wagner Head Coach Glen Payne, "But we did not play up to our full potential and at no point were they able to put us away in either game"
Wagner clinched a spot in their third straight NEC Tournament which will take place next Friday and Saturday on the campus of Fairleigh Dickinson in Hackensack, NJ. LIU has earned the number one seed, followed by Robert Morris clinching the second seed and Wagner the third seed. Mount St. Mary's will close out the field as the fourth seed.
The Seahawks will face the second seeded Colonials in the first round on Friday.
"After an off day tomorrow, we will hit the practice field again on Monday and work on the things we need to work on then, enforced Payne. "I full expected us to come out ready to play and running on all cylinders by Friday."
After both teams failed to push across a run in the first three innings, Robert Morris grabbed the lead with a three run fourth of game one. Ashlee Smith plated the first run with a RBI single to left before Danielle Cohen delivered a two out, two run, line drive double into center.
Wagner would answered right back in the bottom of the inning as sophomore Victoria Batistelli (Huntington Beach, CA / Huntington Beach) singled and scored on a throwing error by Cohen. Freshman Andrea Lazzari (Reno, NV / Wooster), who went 4-5 with three RBI, then drove in her first run with a single into left for a 3-2 deficit.
Lazzari then came through again in the fifth dropping a two run bases loaded ground rule double to the gap in right center. After the first two outs were recorded senior Joy Gallagher (Hazleton, PA / Hazleton) reached on an error before two straight hit batters set up the go ahead hit and a 4-3 Wagner lead.
The Colonials would rally to tie the game in the top of the seventh benefiting from a leadoff error. Crystal Herman pulled a one out single through the left side to even the count and help send the game into extra innings.
An unearned run scored on a two out error in the top of the eighth gave RMU a brief 5-4 lead before another Seahawks rally in their turn at bat. Once again it was Lazzari with the big hit leading off with a double to left center and scoring on a single down the right field line from senior Christy Sykora (Orland Park, IL / Carl Sandburg). The Seahawks would then fill the bases with one out on an error and a walk, but came up scoreless as an infield ground ball and a flyout to right kept the game going.
In the ninth, Smith's two out, three run homer to right put the Colonials up 8-5 and proved to be the difference. Wagner put the first two batters on in the bottom of the stanza, but was unable to score again.
Wagner ace Morgan Miller (Las Vegas, NV / Silverado) started the game, going seven innings, before giving way to junior Dara Gadziala (E. Brunswick, NJ / E. Brunswick) in the eighth.
"Morgan started to labor a bit in the seventh and her pitches were flatting out." commented Payne about the maneuver. "There was no need to push the issue with her especially when we have one of the most talented staffs in the league waiting in the pen and the tournament next weekend."
Junior Christina Hopkins (Edison, NJ / Edison) (2-5) was dealt the loss after coming on in the ninth. Cohen (12-6) was credited with the win allowing one earned run in eight innings, before Brenna Reed got the save in the ninth.
Batistelli had three hits and scored twice in the game to help set a new single season Wagner record for runs scored, with 40 on the year.
R H E
RMU 8 13 3
Wagner 5 9 2
R H E
RMU 3 6 0
Wagner 1 8 0
After the late inning fireworks in the opener game two turned into a pitcher duel. Gadziala (14-5) was steady for Wagner allowing just six hits with four strikeouts, but surrendered three earned run sin the loss. Reed (10-7) meanwhile gave up just the one run on eight hits with six Ks for the win.
As in the first game, the first three innings went scoreless before RMU took the first lead in the fourth. Kali Byers dropped a two run bomb over the fence in left for the 2-0 Colonial advantage.
Sophomore Margaret Gallia (Las Vegas, NV / Community College HS) would cut into the margin in the last of the fourth with a RBI single that sent Batistelli into score. The Colonials then made it 3-1 in the fifth on two out RBI single from Jill Spargo.
Lazzari added two more hits in the game as her and Batistelli combined to go 10-15 with four runs and three RBI in the double header.
Payne added, "Despite not playing our best, we got some really nice offensive production in the middle of the order from Batistelli (4 hits) and Lazzari (6 hits) that helped carry us today."
~ wagnerathletics.com ~
