Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 ROCHESTER, N.Y. – After just over two weeks of no games due to weather delays, the Ithaca College softball team was finally able to take the field today against Rochester.
 
The Bombers split the doubleheader, dropping the first game to the Yellowjackets, 5-3, and winning the second, 5-1
 
Jessie Fleck and Alex Wright paced the offense for the Bombers, each finishing the day with three hits. Vanessa Brown led the way with two RBIs.
 
Game 1
 
Both teams' bats were alive in the first matchup, but fielding errors served as Ithaca's downfall, with Rochester winning, 5-3.
 
The Bombers started the first inning with back-to-back free passes from a hit by pitch and a walk and following a wild pitch from Eleni Wechsler, had two runners in scoring position with no outs. Wechsler then got Vanessa Brown swinging, but a walk to Wright loaded the bases. The Yellowjackets got out of the jam after forcing Abby Shields into an inning-ending double-play.
 
In the bottom of the inning, the Bombers' defense held strong, going three-up, three-down.
 
Ithaca got on the board in the second inning after Allie Colleran broke through with a single to the left side scoring Shannon Grage from second. Grage found herself on base after a walk to start off the frame and advanced on a fielder's choice. Colleran was thrown out at first to end the inning with a runner still left on base.
 
The lead was quickly erased in the bottom of the frame after Rachael Pletz was hit by a pitch. Pletz made her way around the bases with a sacrifice bunt and fielder's choice and then a single by Jocelynn Blackshear allowed her to come around and score.
 
Fleck started the third inning with a single through the left side, but once again Rochester was able to clear the runners with a double-play ball. Alex Wright kept the inning alive with a single to the shortstop, but Ithaca couldn't push another run across in the frame.
 
The bottom of the third and top of the fourth were similar for both squads, with each team getting three straight outs to keep the score deadlocked at one.
 
The Yellowjackets got something cooking in the fourth, with a single by Lydia Petricca through the left side. Following the single, Pletz was hit by a pitch, putting runners on first and second with no outs. The two advanced to second and third on a Wechsler sacrifice bunt. Rochester found itself with the bases loaded with one out after an Ithaca error, but Haley Congdon was able to get Blackshear swinging for the second out. The Yellowjackets snuck one across on a throwing error from Alex Kimmel to give them a 2-1 lead over Ithaca.
 
Fleck once again singled to left field to kick off the inning for the Bombers. Vanessa Brown then stepped up to the plate and blasted a two-run homer over the left field fence to give Ithaca the 3-2 lead going into the bottom of the fifth.   
 
Rochester's offense got going in the bottom of the fifth, taking a 5-3 lead after a Petricca RBI double and a Pletz two-run homer. A leadoff walk for Courtney Semkewyc came around to score after a sac bunt, passed ball and Petricca's double to tie the game at three. Pletz's bomb gave Rochester the two-run advantage late in the game.  
 
Ithaca saw a battery change with two outs in the frame, with Emily Holden coming in to pitch and Frankie-Ann McCauley coming in to catch for the Bombers. The freshman Holden was able to get Wechsler swinging to end the inning.
 
The sixth inning was a quiet one for both teams, with only two baserunners between the two squads. Rochester saw a walk and Jessica Confronti single for runners at first and third, but the Bombers were able to end the threat with a groundout.  
 
With their backs against the wall, the Bombers fought to put something together in the top of the seventh inning. Haley Gaffney led off with a single to left field but then a pop-out, fielder's choice and groundout ended the inning and the game.  
 
The Bombers outhit Rochester, 7-5, but the two errors allowed the Yellowjackets to come out victorious.
 
Fleck and Wright each finished the first matchup with two hits. Congdon went 4.2 innings for the Bombers, giving up four hits and five runs. Holden came in to close it out, collecting one hit and one strikeout in 1.1 innings.
 
Game 2
 
Offense was hard to come by for the Bombers through the first five innings of the game, but a five-run sixth allowed Ithaca to claim the second game 5-1.
 
Colleran got the Bombers off to a good start, leading off the game with a single. She advanced to third on groundouts by Fleck and Brown, but Rochester caused a Wright groundout to end the inning.  
 
Rochester got its own runners in scoring position during the first frame after a double by Shelby Corning. On the next play, Petricca reached first on a fielding error and Corning advanced to third. A throwing error on the catcher allowed Corning to score and Petricca to advance to second. The Bombers escaped any further damage by causing Pletz to line into a double-play.
 
Bombers went three-and-out in the top of the second after a strikeout, foul out and groundout.
 
Rochester threatened in the bottom of the second, with runners at second and third after a fielding error and wild pitch, but Confronti lined out to end the inning without any damage.
 
With two down in the top of the third, Colleran reached on a Rochester fielding error, but the Yellowjackets forced Fleck into a groundout to end the inning.
 
The Yellowjackets found themselves with another scoring opportunity in the bottom of the third after Corning reached on a fielder's choice advanced on after a Petricca single. Ithaca got out of the jam after a fly-out and a fielder's choice to keep the deficit at one.
 
Brown led off the top of the fourth inning with a walk and following a sac bunt by Wright and a groundout by Shields, found herself at third in scoring position. Ithaca couldn't push the run across though, ending the inning with a another groundout.
 
Both team's defenses stepped up and went three-and-out in the bottom of the fourth and top of the fifth, keeping the score at 1-0, Rochester.
 
Kaczegowicz singled in the bottom of the fifth, looking to get something going for the Yellowjackets, but Rochester couldn't get anything across, fouling out and flying out to end the frame.
 
Ithaca was finally able to get its bats going in the top of the sixth, starting with a Fleck single to right center with one out. Brown then doubled to right field to give Ithaca two runners in scoring position with one out. Wright reached first on a fielding error by Rochester, allowing Fleck and Brown to score, giving Ithaca a 2-1 lead. Shields then added a single of her own, advancing to second on the throw while Wright advanced to third. The hits kept coming as Anderson singled, allowing Wright to score and Shields to advance to third.
 
Grage kept the hit party going, doubling to left field and scoring Anderson to give Ithaca a 4-1 lead. Ellie Murray then singled to center and advanced on a throwing error, allowing Grage to score and gave the Bombers a 5-1 lead.
 
Rochester made a pitching change with two down and Sam Malecki was able to find the third out and end the inning with a strikeout.
 
Rochester got a runner on third in the bottom of the sixth inning, but the Bombers got back-to-back outs to close out the inning with no damage done. The Yellowjackets forced Ithaca to go three-and-out in the top of the seventh, but the Bombers held their lead.  
 
Ithaca  forced back-to-back fly-outs and a groundout in the bottom of the seventh inning to hold on and win, 5-1.
 
Seven Bombers recorded a hit in the game and Anderson, Wright, Grage and Murray each picked up an RBI.
 
Shields and Grage split time in the circle, with Shields going three inning and only allowing one run and two hits. Grage went the rest of the distance, allowing one hit over four innings of play.
 
The Bombers are back in action on Wednesday, when they travel to Houghton for an E8 doubleheader slated for 3:30 and 5:30 p.m.