Softball Drops Doubleheader To First-Place Villanova
4/21/2001 12:00:00 AM | Softball
VILLANOVA, Penn. - Freshman McKenzie Richards (Modesto, CA) went 5-for-7 at the plate but Villanova outfielder Sara Carlson homered in each game, including a walk-off two-run shot in the bottom of the eighth inning to win game one, as the Seton Hall softball team (18-11, 6-6 BIG EAST) was swept by the first-place Wildcats (33-3, 10-0), 3-1 & 5-2.
Game one was a heartbreaker for the Pirates, as Carlson homered to right-center field with two outs and a runner on first off of Seton Hall starter Misty Beaver (Machesney Park, IL). Beaver (9-4) allowed one run through the first seven innings and finished with a line of 7.2 innings, seven hits, three runs (two earned), one walk and three strikeouts.
The Pirates tied the game at 1-1 in the top of the seventh inning to keep the game going. Senior third baseman Vickie Lamb (Yorktown Heights, NY) reached on an error to start the inning and advanced to second on a single by senior outfielder Marlena Kotynski (Lyndhurst, NJ). Junior Kim Jackson (Rockaway, NJ), playing for the first time since March 28 and still slightly hobbled by a sprained right ankle, reached safely on a bunt attempt to load the bases. Senior catcher Ryan Barry (Rochester, NY) drove in Lamb with a sacrifice fly.
Seton Hall manged just five hits in the game, two by Richards. Villanova's Keri Stoller picked up her 14th win in relief, pitching three innings of two-hit ball.
In game two, Stoller started for the Wildcats and the Pirates struck first in the second inning when junior first baseman Amy Mellin (Petaluma, CA) singled home Jackson, who had singled and advanced to second on a wild pitch. Villanova answered with two runs in the bottom of the inning off of Seton Hall starter Christina Shanko (Delmont, PA) as Carlson and Ricci Lugo hit solo home runs. In the top of the third, Richards tripled and scored on an error to tie the game at 2-2, but Villanova would again answer in the bottom of the third as Shanko (8-7) hit Gina DeFrancesco with the bases loaded to make it 3-2.
Freshman Casey McDevitt (Sarasota, FL) relieved Shanko in the fourth inning but allowed two runs in the inning. She allowed just one hit the rest of the way, but the Pirates left five runners on over the final four innings. In the top of the seventh inning, Richards singled with one out and freshman Mary Carroll Smith (Nutley, NJ) and Kotynski followed with singles to load the bases. Lamb grounded into a double play to end the game.
The Pirates had eight hits in the second game. Richards was 3-for-4 and 5-for-8 in the doubleheader. Mellin was 2-for-3 with an RBI in the nightcap.
Seton Hall returns to action on Sunday when the Pirates are at Rutgers for a noon doubleheader at Piscataway, NJ.
