LA VERNE, Calif. – The Ithaca College softball team played to a doubleheader split at the University of La Verne on Tuesday afternoon at Campus West Athletics Facilities. Ithaca fell in the opener, 2-0, but bounced back to win the nightcap, 6-4. The Bombers are now 3-3 on the season, while La Verne is 12-4.
Game One: La Verne 2, Ithaca 0
The Leopards struck first in the opener with a two-out solo home run in the bottom of the first inning, which was the only run scored until La Verne went deep again in the sixth. Those were the only two hits for La Verne in the game.
Ithaca picked up four hits in the setback, led by two from senior
Jessie Fleck. Sophomores
Alex Wright and
Nikkey Skuraton recorded the other two hits for the Bombers.
Prior to the sixth inning round-tripper for La Verne, the Leopards loaded the bases in the fifth with one out. Freshman
Abby Shields, who made her first career start, induced a fly out and then was relieved by classmate
Shannon Grage. Grage got out of the jam with a foul out to third base.
Shields went 4.2 innings and struck out one batter. Grage cleaned up the final 1.1 innings.
The Bombers had runners in scoring position in three innings –the first, fourth and sixth – but were unable to drive in a run.
Sophomore
Vanessa Brown recorded a stolen base and hit by pitch in the opener.
Game Two: Ithaca 6, La Verne 4
The Bombers were held hitless through two innings, but sophomore
Hannah Anderson led off the third with a single. After a walk to junior
Hannah Peters, sophomore Nikkey Skurton drove in the first run of the nightcap with a single up the middle to bring in Anderson. A wild pitch allowed Peters and Skuraton to move up a base, and then a fielder's choice off the bat of the bat of junior
Allie Colleran turned into three runs after a throwing error cleared the bases to give Ithaca a 4-0 lead.
La Verne got two runs back in the bottom of the bottom of the third on back-to-back RBI doubles, but sophomore
Haley Congdon settled in and retired the next two batters to keep Ithaca on top, 4-2.
Ithaca would regain a three-run lead in the fifth as Fleck drew a lead-off walk and immediately stole second. Two batters later, Shields drove Fleck in on a base hit through the left side.
The Leopards pulled back to within two runs in the bottom of the sixth on a sac fly, but Ithaca got that run back in the top half of the seventh on an RBI single from Brown with Colleran on second base.
La Verne would not go down without a fight, however, as the Leopards loaded the bases in the bottom of the seventh on an intentional walk. After a crucial strikeout by freshman
Emily Holden, the Leopards drew another walk to push home a run. Holden would secure the win for Ithaca on a dribbler to second on the ensuing at bat.
Congdon earned her second win of the season in 6.1 innings of work. She allowed four runs on six hits with six strikeouts. Holden picked up the save in 2/3 of an inning in relief.
Seven different Bombers recorded a hit in the victory, while Brown, Shields and Skuraton drove in runs. Peters walked three times with no official at bats.
The Bombers head to Chapman University for another doubleheader beginning at 3 p.m. PDT (6 p.m. Eastern) in Orange, Calif. on Thursday.
