BROOKLYN, N.Y. — The Wagner softball team took down No. 1 LIU in the winner's bracket of the NEC Softball Tournament, 8-6, and advanced to the championship round.
In the top of the first inning, LIU removed its starting pitcher after she gave up consecutive one-out walks. Facing a new pitcher, junior third baseman
Sydnie Trujillo connected on the first pitch she saw and crushed a three-run home run over the left field fence. Wagner led 3-0 before junior starting pitcher
Karson Zavala threw a single pitch.
Zavala's outing would also be short-lived, as LIU loaded the bases with a double, a walk and a hit batter, then shrunk the deficit to 3-2 with a two-run single up the middle. Freshman pitcher
Samantha Lotus came out of the bullpen and ended the inning with a strikeout, but LIU would tie the game in the next inning with a solo home run to center.
The pendulum swung back Wagner's way in the top of the third. After a double from Trujillo and a walk to junior second baseman
Leilani Gonzales, senior catcher
Brityn Buchanan drove both runners home with a two-out double, putting the Seahawks ahead 5-3. But LIU would tie the game again in the fourth; another solo home run and an RBI single from the Sharks evened the game at five runs, and it would stay that way until the sixth.
The Sharks took their first lead of the game on a two-out RBI single in the penultimate inning, leaving Wagner with only three outs to work with to avoid playing in an elimination game.
Gonzales reached on a one-out walk, then moved to third on a base hit from freshman right fielder
Addy Day. After Buchanan was hit by the pitch, freshman pinch hitter
Lanie Doukas stepped to the plate with the bases loaded. She popped it up in the infield, the umpires declared her out on the infield fly rule, but LIU could not make the catch. The Seahawks aggressive base-running allowed everyone to move up a base, tying the game at six with an out still to work with.
Senior first baseman
Geanice Morales was the next batter, and she poked a single that deflected off the second baseman's glove far enough to allow both runners to score. Wagner now led 8-6, and Lotus left no doubt in the bottom of the seventh. She retired the LIU side in order, securing her second win of the tournament, and sending the Green and White to the championship round.
Trujillo finished the game 3-4 with two doubles and a home run, giving her five hits through the first two days of the tournament. Morales also picked up a pair of RBIs today, giving her three for the tournament.
The Green and White will take on No. 2 CCSU in the championship round on Saturday, May 9, after the Blue Devils won two games to avoid elimination. The first game will start at 9 a.m. and will stream on ESPN+ from the LIU Softball Complex. If CCSU wins the first game, a second will start at approximately 30 minutes after.
With a win, softball will become the fifth Wagner squad to win a conference championship this season, joining women's soccer, women's water polo, men's tennis, and men's track & field.
