Seton Hall University
South Alabama
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Hammer Leads Hall Past The Mount
2/24/2013 12:00:00 AM | Softball
Senior Brittany Hammer (Manheim, Pa.) carried the big stick offensively for the Pirates in the win over Mount St. Mary's, going 3-for-4 with three RBI and a run scored.
Sophomore Danielle DeStaso (Congers, N.Y.) threw the final 4.2 innings for the Pirates, giving up just one run on four hits with four strikeouts.
Freshman Jackie DiPietro (Horsham, Pa.) also recorded a multi-hit game in the win over the Mountaineers, starting at third base and finishing the game 2-for-3 at the plate, scoring twice.
-- Game One --
South Alabama didn't have one big inning against Seton Hall, but the Jaguars got out to an early lead thanks to a Haley Fagan RBI base hit in the bottom of the first, and South Alabama tacked on two more runs in the second and third innings, taking advantage of an SHU error in each inning to account for its second run.
The Jaguars scored one more in the fourth, but Seton Hall junior right hander Jen Metzger (Pine Hill, N.J.) kept South Alabama off the scoreboard in the fifth.
The finally tally came about via a passed ball in the sixth and a Kaleigh Floore game-ending base hit, an RBI single to left, scoring Brittany Fowler.
Sophomore Colltey Sheldon (Peoria, Ariz.) went 1-for-2 at the plate for Seton Hall. Farish Beard threw six shutout innings for South Alabama, giving up just one hit with 11 strikeouts.
DeStaso started at pitcher for the Pirates, giving up five runs, just three of them earned, with three strikeouts in 2.1 innings. Metzger faced 16 batters in three innings of relief, finishing with a strikeout and three runs against.
-- Game Two --
Mount St. Mary's actually controlled the early action against Seton Hall, leading 2-0 through two and a half innings of play following a Holly Buckel RBI single with two outs and the bases loaded in the top of the third.
That lead would not last long, with Seton Hall bouncing back to score three in the bottom half of the inning to take the lead for good. Hammer tied the game with a two-RBI double to right center field, scoring DiPietro and Sheldon on the play. She scored later in the inning thanks to a Maria DeLuca (Cedar Grove, N.J.) single to left.
Seton Hall stretched its advantage to 4-2 in the fourth after DeStaso drew a bases loaded walk, bringing home senior Kirby Groves (Yardley, Pa.), who led off the inning with a walk.
In the bottom of the sixth, Hammer drove home DiPietro for a second time as the Pirates tallied an insurance run to take a 5-3 lead into the seventh. DeStaso made quick work of any Mount St. Mary's rally attempt by retiring the Mountaineers in order to secure the SHU win.
Seton Hall concludes action at the Jacksonville University Invitational on Sunday, Feb. 24, when it faces the University of Delaware at 11:15 p.m. The Blue Hens scored four runs in the seventh inning to come back and beat Seton Hall, 5-2, when the two teams matched up on Friday afternoon.
