March 14, 2008

Stats

Orlando, FL - Behind freshman pitcher Heather Ochoa's (Los Angeles, CA/Notre Dame) arm and six RBI combined from junior infielder Andrea Lazzari (Reno, NV/Wooster) and senior designated player Margaret Gallia (Las Vegas, NV/Community College HS) the Wagner College softball team (1-5) beat Florida A&M 8-6 (3-18) to capture their first victory of the season after falling in the first game to Cleveland State (7-5) 9-0 in six innings.

The Seahawk offense came alive in the second game against Florida A&M, and their veteran senior catcher Victoria Batistelli (Huntington Beach, CA/Huntington Beach) was indeed the catalyst.

Leading off their home half of the second inning, with the count full, Seahawk backstop crushed a towering clout over the centerfield wall to mark her first homerun of the season and also the first run of the Rebel Games for the Green & White.

From there, the rest of the team dug in at the plate and came up big as the very next inning they would explode for four runs, putting them with a nice one-run lead after the Rattlers had gotten on the board as the fortunate recipients of three unearned runs in their half of the third off freshman Hurler Ochoa - the eventual winner of her first collegiate game as a starting pitcher.

In that fruitful third inning the Seahawks got their runs on an RBI single from senior shortstop Katie Stevens (Reno, NV/Wooster) and a huge base-clearing three RBI double from senior DP Gallia.

Wagner tacked on three more runs - which proved to be vital insurance later on - with one in the fifth and two in the sixth after infielder Lazzari knocked a two-out double to drive senior rightfielder Ami Iwicki (Flemington, NJ/Hunterdon Central) and freshman centerfielder Emily Pierce (Phoenix, AZ/Desert Vista) in to make the score 8-4 in favor of the Green & White.

The Rattlers wouldn't go out without a rally attempt, however. In the top of the seventh, their last chance to even up the score, Florida A&M brought the tying run to the plate with one out. Ochoa, though, showed she could bare down was able to get the last two outs to pop out and ground out to her position while only giving up two runs, solidifying the inaugural victory for Wagner College in the early 2008 season.

In the first game, it was very much a different tune.

Cleveland State's sophomore hurler, Amanda Macenko get the Seahawk bats baffled for the entire game as she took a no-hit bid into the fifth inning before junior designated player Jaclyn Vanore (Palisades Park, NJ/Paramus Catholic) broke it up with a single up the middle.

The Seahawks would only muster another hit as it would come off the bat of freshman outfielder Hailey Corthell (Reno, NV/Reno) on an unorthodox infield fly that landed in nowhere's-ville for a base hit.

The game was ended on account of run differential in the sixth inning after Cleveland State made it 9-0.

The Seahawks now get ready for another double dip tomorrow afternoon when they'll take on Rhode Island and Yale at 1 and 5 pm respectively.